Helen Leslie (nee Strong) mother to Sammy and Camilla Leslie, was brought up in the tiny village of Wilviliscombe, Somerset. She was briefly a primary school teacher, before heading off the Gibraltar where she made a living by ‘procuring…’ whiskey and ‘kindly delivering’ it across the Spanish border. Later, on a skiing holiday skiing in Kitzbuhl, Austria she laid eyes on the devastatingly handsome and ‘dangerous’ Desmond Leslie.
They married and settled into a night-club filled life in London. But this was soon exchanged for Desmond’s country seat in Glaslough.
Ever pragmatic, Helen mucked in and made the most of it. She began her ‘business career’ by inviting young European aristocrats to come and ride at the castle and learn English. Helen then decided that maybe adults would also enjoy Glaslough, so she started the Equestrian Centre in 1974.
She’s now retired to the south of France.