HORSE PLAY
Moment furious mum screams at shirtless men on horseback as they splash into Serpentine lido at Hyde Park
THIS is the moment a fuming mum screamed at shirtless men on horseback as they rode their ponies straight into Hyde Park's Serpentine Lido.
The piebald ponies were filmed cooling off in scorching heat as they enjoyed a dip feet away from parkgoers pedalling boats in the famous waterway.
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The mum told the Sun Online: "There were at least 20 children swimming in the Lido - it is a swimming pool inside the lake - it is sectioned off to swim in.
"They ploughed their horses in to the swimming pool where the children were all swimming.
"It was terrifying, and I was responding as a terrified mother."
Concerned about injuries to the ponies, the mum added: "What people don't realise is that the floor of the Lido is thick with algae.
"So the horses slid, and thrashed and buckled in the water, meanwhile they pushed and herded them further forward, to the point that their heads were completely submerged under the water."
The Londoner said: "For me it wasn't about who these men were, or where they were from, it was that they were endangering the children swimming."
The mum-of-one added: "The horses looked well looked after.
";It was just these guys being stupid on the day.
"This went on for half an hour - there was no help. Other people took photos and video.
"There was no lifeguard or security there, and they also have an open beer garden - it's nuts."
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Video shared on Twitter by @Cabvision Taxi is accompanied by the caption "chaos again in Hyde Park".
The footage shows the irate woman remonstrating with the group.
It's not clear how long the three ponies were in the water for, but they appear to have been filmed on Saturday, June 5, when the mercury had climbed to 24C.
The mum fired back when one bloke told her to 'shut up'.
Walking closer to him, she yelled at the man standing near the Serpentine: "I will not go away.
"I don't have to shut up, you don't get to tell me to shut up."
She then tells the group of mostly young men to "get them [the ponies] out of the water".
Several men - including one rider in the water - can be seen remonstrating with her.
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She asks the small crowd gathered nearby if "anyone else wants to see the horses out of the water".
The mum then turns away as the men continue to mock her.
One man asks for £50 - presumably to take the ponies out - before saying out loud that the woman would "float in here wouldn't she?"
He advised her to "deal with yours".
The Twitter account then shows a photo of a police van at the scene.
The mum told the Sun: "They verbally attacked me in front of my daughter, saying how ugly I was, but that I would 'just float' [if in the water]; they were laughing.
"I am secure in my appearance but my daughter was absolutely destroyed."
'NO ARRESTS'
The Metropolitan Police told the Sun Online that officers "were called around 16.36pm on Saturday, 5 June to reports of horses in the Serpentine, Hyde Park.
"Officers attended and advised the horse riders that it was an offence to have animals in the Serpentine. They got out of the water and left the area.
"There were no arrests."
A spokeswoman for the Royal Parks said, "horses are not permitted in the Serpentine".
When video of the ponies was shared on Twitter, two men responded that the visitors were "not looking for any trouble."
Sited in the middle of Hyde Park, the Serpentine Lido and its paddling pool are an ideal spot to cool off on a hot day.
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Horses may be ridden on the roads and the designated riding ways in Hyde Park.
But, they are not allowed on footpaths, cycle paths or grassed areas, according to a Freedom of Information response.
Hyde Park has two specialist horse riding arenas on North Carriage Drive and South Carriage Drive.
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The lido is open on weekends throughout May, and seven days a week from June 1 until early September.
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