Our resident investigator of Nottingham weird history looks at how the 'ten o' clock 'hosses' came to be...
Before Netflix was able to coerce unsuspecting viewers into binge watching entire seasons of reality schmuck with a simple suggestion of “One more episode until the next season,” there was a time when TV simply ended. The only option was to get some shut eye. When I was a youth, bedtime was insinuated by Igglepiggle floating off into the distance away from the Night Garden, which, in hindsight, was home to creatures only psilocybin could conjure up.
Unfortunately for most parents, by the time the credits began rolling on 64 Zoo Lane, this didn’t necessarily result in an immediate departure to the land of sleep for their children. Sometimes, if bedtime story would not suffice, a threatening tale of ghouls, headless horses or whichever bogeyman haunts you to this day would be delivered to uncooperating children across the country instead, to scare them into slumber.
Whilst the Midlands could be divided up into east or west, “bab” or “duck,” Sleaford Mods or Sabbath, a tale of undead horses seems to unite the middle earth. A warning to any protesting children against unfair bedtimes, seems to have made it into homes across the Midlands: The Ten O’clock Horses would come to get ya!
Before these hooves roamed the heart of England, one possible narrative is arguably the most cliché origin story for a Bogeyman I have ever come across. All the way back in the mid-to-late 1600s, Bestwood housed several horse stables within the park. On one fateful night when grey rain tumbled down to the blackened streets and darkness was the only unifier across the village, the horses were loaded onto carriages for transportation. As expected, an unfortunate accident ensued and all the four-legged creatures were killed, and you’ll never guess what time the incident occurred? Slap bang at ten o’clock, not a millisecond before or after.
The true horror surpasses these well-travelled creatures as rumours circulated that some of these waste collectors would kidnap children along their travels to sell on to farmers
As most undead animals tend to do in these tales, the horses (or ‘hosses’ in Notts-speak) began haunting the streets in search of children who would refuse to sleep. In most accounts they pose no physical threat and instead act as a psychological trigger which strikes fear into the minds of little people.
The second and most likely birth of the zombified steeds seems to have been in Leicester at the time of the Industrial Revolution. With an influx of countrymen moving into the city to reap the rewards of industry, inner city populations grew along with the amount of human waste. As a means of protecting the five senses, farmers would use the smelly stuff as fertiliser and would transport it on none other than horse-drawn carts.
Local governments had to get involved as rush hour traffic is bad enough let alone with the rancid smell of yesterday’s dinner. Time-limits were then imposed on farmers which meant they weren’t allowed to start collecting waste until 9 o’clock.
Quick side note: The Ten 0’clock Horses seem to be Nottingham-specific as other parts of the midlands are more familiar with hauntings around the 9 o’clock mark. Whilst these deathly stallions are products of manure, neglect, and the Industrial Revolution, it is rather endearing to see that they are still compliant to local travel restrictions and speed limits.
The true horror surpasses these well-travelled creatures as rumours circulated that some of these waste collectors would kidnap children along their travels to sell on to farmers. Due to the shortage in countrymen since the Industrial Revolution, sleep-deprived children seemed to be the only solution. However, these tales could be built upon prejudices from city-dwellers as the original bin men were often perceived as bandits and/or travellers.
Sadly, the days of parents tormenting misbehaving children with threats of bogeymen seem to be a thing of the past. Nowadays kids will probably just Chat GPT any concerns they have surrounding their parents’ idle threats. I would argue this should call for ID verification checks when using such websites as winding up younger family members is a fundamental part of growing up. Call it character building with a sprinkling of controlled PTSD.
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