GIANT shire horse Sam was the talk of the town as he met admiring fans in Devizes for the first time.

The latest horse to join the Wadworth team has taken over from much-loved Monty who after eight years of working in the town has retired to Wales.

Sam, whose full name is Goose Green's Perfection, started work last Wednesday and on Thursday was ready to meet fans outside Wadworth Visitor Centre before taking to the roads.

The six-year-old, who even by Shire horse standards is a big boy standing at 18.2 hands high, was an immediate hit with young and old who made the most of the opportunity to say hello.

Wadworth is one of the last remaining breweries to use Shires for dray deliveries as well as appearing at shows and being used for marketing opportunities.

Sam, who has four white socks and white blaze, joins Shires Max and Archie. They will complete between 10 and 15 deliveries around Devizes every week. In their heyday, before the arrival of the internal combustion engine, more than 40 Shires were used by the Brewery to deliver their already famous beers to local inns and hostelries.

The stable team of head horseman Martin Whittle, his son Callum and groom Hannah Miller, were all sad to see award winning Monty retire.

Mr Whittle said, “We are really pleased to welcome Sam to our Shire horse team. He is a well-trained and experienced Shire horse and we have great expectations for him.

“We wish Monty a long and happy retirement in Wales. He has been a real asset during his eight years with us and has a string of trophies to show for it.”

Each Shire horse weighs almost a tonne and they have six feeds a day. A set of shoes lasts about four weeks, and a mobile farrier visits regularly to hot shoe them with a mobile forge.