Brand Ambassador Inspector Lesley Wheatley of Northumbria Police makes Chronical Live
Lesley Wheatley and William trotted to victory to qualify for the British Riding Club Championships
Mike Fuller 14:39, 11 JUN 2018
Watch a Northumbria Police inspector and her horse trot into a national dressage championship a while performing to Bear Necessities.
Lesley Wheatley and William hot-stepped to glory in the British Riding Club's dressage to music qualifier.
You can see their dance to the famous Jungle Book song above.
The pair were representing Forces Equine, the national riding club for the military and the police.
Northumbria Police neighbourhood inspector Lesley Wheatley and her horse William have qualified for the dressage competition at the British Riding Club Championships (Image: Northumbria Police)
Lesley, who has been riding for 40 years, said: "It was a great experience to be able to compete on behalf of the uniformed service and I was delighted to actually come top of my class.
"It was a real honour to not only represent the police but also the military and all the blue light services.
"The competition was tough but William was fantastic and to qualify for the national championships is a dream of ours."
Lesley, from Gateshead , and William were awarded top prize out of the nine entries in the elementary level competition.
Northumbria Police neighbourhood inspector Lesley Wheatley and her horse William have qualified for the dressage competition at the British Riding Club Championships (Image: Northumbria Police)
They will go on to compete in British Riding Club Championships in October.
It will be back to the day job as a neighbourhood inspector in north Newcastle before then.
Despite being a talented rider, Lesley prefers to patrol on foot than be a part of the force's Mounted Section.
William, whose full name is Furst Lazlo, is a seven-year-old Hanoverian horse.
He prefers to spend his days grazing in the sunshine than take up a crime-fighting career.
Lesley added: "I love my horses but ironically I have always stuck to foot patrol in my day job.
"They were kind enough to lend me some of their kit for the competition and I think William looked the part.
"He's a bit of a softie when it comes to big crowds though so I don't think he has any plans to join me at the police just yet!"
