I WAS born in Essex to lovely, supportive parents, neither of them were ‘horsey’! My dad (a builder) spent his lifetime restoring a derelict house he bought. My aunt kept her horse near where we lived. She let me sit on her mare as a toddler, and then took me to a local show in a lead rein class when I was five years old. From these early days, my passion for horses grew.

I went to a local riding school with a schoolfriend, but was never able to have my own pony. Dad told me that we couldn’t have a horse until we had somewhere to keep it and I was old enough to earn money to pay towards its keep.

I did manage some Pony Club activities though, as my mum (a schoolteacher) was helping a local lady’s sons with their English and Maths. In return, Mum asked if I could help with Barbara’s horses and ponies. We took the ponies to Pony Club and shared them in lessons and at shows.

As a teenager, I helped Barbara’s friend Janet, who used to breed show jumpers with the owner of Temple Stud, with her horses. I loved helping with the mares and foals, watching foalings, helping to break the young horses in, and found it really rewarding to take them to their first shows. This is where my passion for breeding stems from - the Temple Stud bred several successful Grade A show jumpers that won classes at the Horse of the Year Show.

I was more interested in eventing and went to watch at Badminton, Burghley and Gatcombe whenever I had the opportunity.

My dad managed to purchase some land behind our house. That gave me the opportunity to have my first horse, a TB x New Forest yearling filly, when I was 18.

Although Tara was a lovely mare, she only matured to about 15 hands and was not really big enough for me. So, with the help of my friend Janet, I bred two foals from her whilst I was a student away at university!

My poor mum really didn’t know what she was letting herself in for, but she coped with the foalings admirably! The second of the two foals, Tammy - a filly by the thoroughbred stallion Pal O’Mine - was 16 hands high, and I competed her in many Riding Club events, hunter trials, one-day events and Riding Club teams.

I also bred my first two British Eventing (BE) eventers from her - two Jumbo mares that I competed myself up to BE Novice and one-star level.

When I left university, I went to work at Writtle College. I went for a summer job and stayed for over 30 years, working my way up from a Laboratory Technician to Senior Lecturer.

Pennie and her son James with ‘Walter’, Ros and Sarah at Badminton \ 1st Class Images

1. Congratulations, you’re part of eventing history by breeding Michele and Archie Saul’s Lordships Graffalo, the only triple Badminton winner - tell us more about him?

Lordships Graffalo, or ‘Walter’ as he is affectionately known, was bred out of my mare Cornish Queen at Lordships Stud, Writtle College in 2012.

The breeding of Walter and his half-sister Lordships Parc Royale or ‘Polly’ came about when I invited Ken Rehill (The Stallion Company owner) to come and speak to my students about ‘all things breeding’ in 2011.

Ken asked if I could show him around Lordships Stud and he liked the way we were building practical breeding activities into the curriculum. He kindly offered to sponsor several mare breedings for the college to use his stallions and the students could be involved with preparing and exhibiting the resulting progeny at the BEF Futurity gradings, also held at Writtle College.

2. And about his dam Cornish Queen?

I loaned my mare Cornish Queen, who was bred by Olympian Bridget Parker from the damline of her Olympic horse (Cornish Gold), to Lordships Stud and chose Grafenstolz and then Parco for her two breedings.

I bought Walter and Polly back from Lordships Stud as youngsters and sent them both to Ros Canter as three-year-olds to break in. This followed her success with their half-sibling that I had bred previously from Cornish Queen - Pencos Crown Jewel, by Jumbo.

3. Proudest breeder moment?

My proudest breeder moment so far has definitely been seeing Walter and Ros win Badminton for the record-breaking third time and having my name announced with Writtle College as joint breeders (which hasn’t always happened).

We managed to join Ros to congratulate her in the collecting ring after the prizegiving and she kindly invited my son James and I to have our photograph taken with her, Walter and groom Sarah Charnley by the official photographers!

4. The ‘Walter’ stable name story?

The name Walter came from his owners when they bought him. At college, we let the students give stable names to the foals. They chose a theme each year and his year it was Greek gods. His name originally was Hermes.

Michele Saul always had human names for her horses. They chose Walter after a horse transporter they knew - I think it really suits him!

5. Internet - thoughts?

Generally, I find the internet and social media useful for following horses I have bred, researching pedigrees, and promoting my stallion Pencos Arctic King (maternal half-brother to Walter, by Chilli Morning) and youngstock, but [they] need careful management, as not everything is verified as correct or truthful.

For example, I have seen several horses advertised as being related to Lordships Graffalo, which are simply no relation!

6. “Fools breed foals for wise men to buy.” Agree/disagree?

I totally agree - but due to Walter and Ros, I still do it and haven’t given up yet!

There is science involved, but you are dealing with partnerships between horses and riders - two living beings. There is a huge amount of luck involved too. You can breed the best horse on paper in terms of pedigree, but it may never fulfill its potential due to illness, injury or simply not finding the right rider to form that perfect partnership.

Team Walter: Caroline Farr (lecturer and former manager of Lordships Stud, Writtle University College), and Pennie Wallace being presented with their British Horse Foundation award by Pippa Funnell at the 2025 London International Horse Show \ Peter Nixon

7. Do breeders get enough reward/recognition?

Breeders are a very important part of the equation of success, but not the only factor involved. Riders and owners get far more recognition for good reason - they have produced and financed the horse to compete successfully. However, it is frustrating that breeders do not receive recognition for getting tickets to watch their progeny compete on the world stage.

8. ‘It takes a team’ - who’s on ‘Team Walter’?

Bridget Parker, who bred Walter’s dam Cornish Queen from her amazing ‘Cornish’ family and sold her to me; all the Lordships Stud Writtle College staff involved with his breeding and early years; Ken Rehill, who owns Walter’s sire Grafenstolz and kindly sponsored the breeding; Annie Makin a good friend, fellow breeder and former owner of Pencos Crown Jewel, who chose Ros Canter to break and produce her, when Ros wasn’t so well known.

Ros and all her amazing family and team, who have now produced three of Cornish Queen’s progeny for me, Michele and Archie Saul - Walter’s extremely loyal and longstanding owners, who have put so much into Walter’s career and “his world”!

9. Breeding horses - would you do it all over again?

Yes. It is addictive, but there is no guarantee there would ever be another Walter! Walter is definitely my horse of a lifetime.

10. One for the future?

Walter has a full-sibling - a filly who is rising three years old. I sold her as an embryo in an auction to an American owner. Look out for Pencos Sovereign in the future!