Horses are intertwined with our history, and not only that but they’ve inspired some of our favourite literature too, so this week Kate Green remembers our favourite equine characters.

Also in County Life this week, it’s the most wonderful time of the year for wildfowlers, finds John Lewis-Stempel, while we mourn the end of an era as the Land Rover Defender goes out of production.

Returning inside to the warm we visit the thrilling Prestat chocolate factory, which inspired Roald Dahl, and take a turn around the V&A’s new European galleries.

Turning to the kitchen, Simon Hopkinson roasts a teal and stews a partridge, and in the property section we ask the dreade question: when is it time to downsize?