From Game Of Thrones to saddling winners: Dothraki knight turned racehorse trainer Robbie Llewellyn strikes at Ascot twice

Robbie Llewellyn has swapped the big screen with Game Of Thrones to pursue a training career and celebrated his first Ascot winner on Friday thanks to Titan Discovery, with Top Cloud adding to the haul on the track's Saturday card.

Llewellyn, a former stable lad for Evan Williams and Tim Vaughan, spent a spell outside racing working for the Devil's Horsemen, a leading horse supplier for the film industry in Europe, when he worked as a Dothraki knight on the blockbuster television series and other major productions. 

He returned to assist Vaughan, but made the decision to start up on his own when Covid hit and now trains 24 horses alongside his wife Sarah at his Wroughton stables in Wiltshire.

"I fell out of racing for a bit and went filming for two years. I just wasn’t earning enough money for what I wanted to do," Llewellyn said. "I worked for the Devil’s Horseman on Game Of Thrones and a few other big productions with film horses. 

"Because I’m six foot and I could ride they obviously thought I looked like a knight, and because I could ride well I was given the bad horses. I put on about four and a half stone when I did it because I had to wear full body armour." 

While TV sets have a reputation for being glamorous environments, Llewellyn's experience was different and he would much prefer to be hailed for his work in racing circles.

Titan Discovery (second left, noseband) and Liam Harrison fight off Toonagh Warrior (left) to win at AscotCredit: Alan Crowhurst

"It’s not that exciting," he said. "Around 18 hours holding a horse isn’t fun but it was well paid. I was a Dothraki. I don’t think it’s that cool – I’d rather be known as a racehorse trainer."

Llewellyn was much more effusive about the performance of Titan Discovery, who battled past Toonagh Warrior to win the 1m7½f handicap hurdle under Liam Harrison to fulfil a long-term plan.

"It’s a massive thrill," he said. "It’s been a bit of a plan for a long time, probably for the last six months, as we weren’t sure whether he was good enough to win a novice hurdle but we thought he’d make a handicapper. He ran well in two competitive novice hurdles and the last day he copped right on. 

"I’m delighted with him because he did it the hard way coming around the outside, but he put his head down when it mattered and Liam gave him a fantastic ride."

While Llewellyn was not cut out for the battlefield, he is quickly making an impression as a trainer as Titan Discovery was his 11th winner of the campaign and he is operating at a 22 per cent strike-rate. The trainer's latest winner also spells good news for the yard's future.

"Kevin Glastonbury, who is part of the ownership group, bred him," he said. "He and I own half of Titan Discovery's sister, so we have a foal on the ground too, while Lunar Discovery won last week too. It’s looking a great bit of breeding and the horses are flying. 

"It’s a dream come true to win here and especially with this horse, who has been in the yard since he was young. There’s no rush with him now as it’s job done and today was D-day. There are no grand plans and we’ll see how he comes out of it."

Top Cloud extended Llewellyn's dream sequence and Harrison's too when he stayed on gamely to win Saturday's 2m7½f handicap hurdle under Harrison.

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