AFTER a couple of requests to do the Big Interview were politely declined by Barry Connell down the years, I find the Dublin native generously accessible and as intriguing as I’d imagined when he welcomes the press for the launch of the Bar One Fairyhouse Winter Festival on Wednesday.

It’s a stunning morning in Boherbaun Stables, just outside Nurney, 15 kilometers south of the Curragh. Barely a cloud in the sky, but cold enough that the steam is clearly visible from the horses after they come in from their exercise.