Entry 4: Character interviews

Finally managed to take some time out of my not so busy schedule to work on this blog again. Thanks to the poll on DeviantART, I am going to be doing character interviews with the main cast of A Horse Named Ox. I'll probably do something similar for the cast of Stallion Song at some point if there's enough interest.

Quick update on life in general: I have found a new obsession which is probably not the best of ideas considering I have more than enough already, but anywho. One of my housemates is a gamer, and though this hasn't really interested me at all since I was about 12 or 13, she got Assassins Creed III for Christmas and started to play it here, in our uni house. I was sat down, tapping away, minding my own business and then I glanced at the screen and was hooked. After she finished the game I worked through the older ones and just fell in love with the history and the prettiness of the game, not to mention the surprising amount of depth some of the characters had (mainly focusing on Haytham in ACIII cus I bloody love that man). She's recently acquired Brotherhood so I've been sat glued to the screen watching her playing it...anyone else do that? I'm a terrible gamer. I can backseat game excellently, but I desynchronised so many times in the first and second ones it wasn't even funny anymore. So I've been obsessed with this since January, and it's actually helped me with my writing, in a strange kind of way- it's just another piece of inspiration I've gotten! Anyway. I digress.

I was going to just go through the cast in a fact file format, but I thought this would probably be more fun and make them seem more real.

 

Feature: character interviews for 'Ox'.

Cast:

· Angus

· Linus

· Cerys

· Felicity

· Travis

Interviewer: So, you're all here! I hope you’re all well. We’ll go straight in with the questions, first off, how did you get to Stonechat?

Angus: Well, I got in on a scholarship- I was talent scouted at a local show I was at.
Linus: I always wanted to do something with horses, and where there’s a will, there’s a way. I wanted to show that I wasn’t just some rich kid who got here out of Daddy’s pocket, though- so I ended up auditioning with one of my uncle’s horses for the scholarship. I didn’t get through (ol’ Scholarship managed that instead) but they said how much they wanted me to come, so I convinced my parents to pay for me.
Cerys: The moment I heard Linus was trying out for Stonechat I jumped on the bandwagon- no way was I staying in boring old Dublin by myself! I wasn’t sure if my parents would be happy with shipping us both off to an expensive academy, but it turns out they clearly wanted shot of us! Maybe Linus more than me…
Linus: I heard that!
Felicity: I just paid to come here, like most of the others.
Travis: My father came to Stonechat, so I carried on the legacy. There’s always been someone of my family here.

Interviewer: Wow, quite a mix then! How are you finding your stay at Stonechat so far?

Angus, Linus and Cerys: (together) Loving it!
Linus: Although the workload is a handful…and I have to read…no one told me about reading!
Cerys: (laughing) Moron.
Angus: Some of the early morning work outs are difficult though.
Felicity: I agree! Sometimes I can’t drag myself out of bed quick enough!
Travis: It was much better back in my father’s day, when they wouldn’t just let in any riffraff.
Cerys: Linus, sit down. You can punch him later.

Interviewer: It’s good to hear you’re settling in well! So, Stonechat is renowned for teaching the champions of tomorrow- where did you all start in your riding career?

Angus: My father was a big eventer until he got injured in a riding accident. So I’ve always had the horse-loving vibe around, even though we moved away to a city. I started riding horses properly when I was about nine, and I fell in love there and then. My city had a small urban riding stables and the moment I could I started helping out around there to pay for my lessons. I started going to a few shows with them, and that was when I was talent scouted. I guess the rest is history.
Linus: (thinks for a while) I started riding during a holiday in Spain- I think I was about ten. My sister had been riding for a while before and I whined a little bit about having to ride on HOLIDAY, of all places…but I’m glad I did (laughs) I still remember the fun we had. After that I started borrowing my uncle’s old point to pointer and took him for a few spins on National Hunt tracks. He also had a grumpy cob pony that I used to compete with- not very well though. He had a bad habit of refusing without warning and sending you flying over his head.
Cerys: My uncle started me off. When Linus was too busy trying to play football, I would be riding the point to pointer, who was called George, around the field and trying not to fall off.
Linus: (interrupts) You used to fall off all the time!
Cerys: He was a big horse! Anyway, I can’t really remember a time where I wasn’t obsessed with horses.
Felicity: My dad was in the business- I never had a chance to like anything else!
Travis: Same with me.

Interviewer: Are there any other things you like doing as hobbies?

Angus: This is going to sound a bit sad, but horses are sort of my life… I don’t think there’s much else to it. I tried playing guitar for a little while, but now it just sits in the corner of my room like an ornament.
Linus: I like zombie movies! Lots of zombies, the gorier the better!
Cerys: Sometimes I draw… I like going around sketching things I see. But nobody’s meant to know about that!
Linus: Aww, you sketch? That’s adorable.
Cerys: And that is why. (smacks his arm)
Felicity: I do a lot of photography. Although, I consider shopping a hobby too…
Linus and Angus: Girls.
Travis: I did a lot of rugby back home at school. I was in the team since I started- they called me a prodigy!

Interviewer: Back to horses, seeing as that’s the main point here, what are your favourite breeds and why?

Angus: I quite like thoroughbreds. I like tall horses with a lot of give.
Linus: I’m a big fan of Andalusians and other Spanish horses- they got me into the sport, I owe a lot to them! Not to mention they’re like…the Porsche of the horse world, you know?
Cerys: A Porsche? Really? I like Friesians. All that wild mane! I’d love a Friesian someday.
Linus: Friesians won’t win 3 Day Events, Cerys.
Cerys: Neither will Andalusians.
Felicity: I like Arabians. They’re so dainty and really photogenic, not to mention the fact they have so much endurance.
Travis: So long as they’re well-bred and good at their job I don’t mind.

Interviewer: Quite a variety there! What about your favourite disciplines?

Angus: I quite like Dressage, actually. It’s a lot harder than it looks, but at least you don’t have to worry about your horse falling over. It’s all about making sure the horse is moving right, and that they’re nice and supple. And you get to do it to music a lot of the time- that’s always fun. But I also like Cross Country…tough one!
Linus: Cross Country, without a doubt! Or hunting… hunting’s fun too.
Cerys: Show jumping for me!
Felicity: I like Dressage. Though showing in general is fun.
Travis: In general, I like racing, though I’m probably a bit too rough for that.

Interviewer: Okay, I think that’s all for now! Thank you for answering these questions and we’d like to hear more from you soon.

Also, I apologise for the strange changing of font- I think blogger's playing up a bit.