Living Life At Full Tilt!

Full body armour, a 10ft lance and a horse – it’s all part of the day job for female jouster Nicky Willis

- Claire Saul

At speeds of up to 30mph, with armour weighing over 20kg and wielding a 12ft lance, the art of jousting demands strength, agility, skilled equestrianism – and a huge amount of bravery! Since the 10th century tourneys have been an all-male domain, but a new dimension to the sport has arrived in recent years, with talented females such as the highly skilled English Heritage jouster Nicky Willis.

“I have always had an absolute passion for horses, but when I was younger I never found a job that pressed all the buttons for me,” says Nicky. “I worked as a painter and decorator for eight years until one day, a friend of mine contacted me about an advert they had spotted in a horse magazine for a television channel that wanted to recreate a chariot race for a programme. I applied and was selected for it. I was sent to Spain to learn how to chariot race and the stunt man who taught me there actually offered me a job! So I went on to work for him doing stunt work. He also did jousting, so that initially sparked my interest.