Kirk and Hannah Petrakis

Hannah and Kirk are passionate about horses and all animals. They run a horse and carriage business, K&H Cockington Carriages, in Devon, and have three daughters, Sophia, 14, Naomi, 8, and Amy-Rose, 7.

As a family they love and care for their horses and enjoy the outdoors and wildlife. Kirk explains: “We will be celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary this year. We got married in Cockington Parish Church, which we can see from the stable yard, where we run our horse and carriage business. We provide tour rides and a wedding service around the beautiful grounds of Cockington. We have two beautiful horses, called Annie and Cowboy, and a miniature Shetland pony called Patrick, who was born on St Patrick’s Day, and who is training to be a therapy pony. He’s already helped our daughter Naomi who has moderate learning difficulties."

Kirk is a local lad. He went to Cockington Primary School, grew up watching the horse and carriages go by as a child and always had a connection with animals. He was recognised for having a natural way with the horses and has found a passion for developing the horses training, especially with Patrick.

Hannah was born in mid Sussex and first learnt to ride at the age of four. She lived in the county until she was nine, when her family moved to Devon. Horses became a big part of the family and Hannah spent a lot of her time riding her beloved pony, Misty, across Dartmoor. Her great grandfather had a carriage company in London, so it was in her blood to take up carriage driving and to continue the tradition in Cockington.

Hannah says: “During lockdown it was a very difficult time for all businesses in Torbay, but we were inspired to do a children’s book with our daughter Sophia, called The Adventures of Patrick The Pony, The Ten Ducklings. Our vision is for Patrick, through his therapy training, to help people with disabilities and mental health challenges. We wanted to get involved with War Horse Memorial because we believe that all animals that have served in wars should be remembered. They had no choice and gave so much.”

The Adventures of Patrick The Pony, The Ten Ducklings costs £7.99, is available on Amazon or can be ordered from: info@celebritypony.co.uk

K&H Cockington Carriages provide horse and carriage rides for weddings, tour rides and private bookings around the beautiful setting of Cockington. Bookings are weather permitted and Kirk and Hannah always advise booking in advance. See their Facebook page for videos and pictures of the horses and what the team get up to.

Tel: 07912 992818