Spectacular jousting

I was over at Linlithgow Palace today for Historic Scotland's annual jousting competition with Michael, Fiona and Fiona's nephew, Duncan.

The torrential rain this morning had me slightly worried as I sat on a bus to Linlithgow. By midday it was still overcast but warm, and by 3pm it was blazing 22 degree sunshine.

There was sword fighting (Duncan was clearly the winner in our group), horses, falcons, medieval craftsmanship and of course the jousting, which we watched twice - once from each side.

This was the evil Knight who had just lost the tournament. He stole two horses and rode them around the arena standing on their backs - one foot on each horse (pictured). Mighty impressive if you ask me!

A fabulous day all round. I think I might need a nap to recover from all of this action. The jousting is on again tomorrow at the Palace - it's a great day out if you're at a loose end tomorrow!