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Tributes for 'fit and healthy' woman found dead in Harrogate

Friday, 29 August 2025 12:35

Abigail Garside was celebrating her wedding anniversary when she was found dead in Harrogate.

Tributes have been paid to a champion horse rider who was found dead in Harrogate just hours after celebrating her first wedding anniversary.

Abigail Garside, 30, had spent the day with her husband Samuel marking the milestone at Rudding Park.

She shared photographs online of the couple enjoying their celebration, writing:

“Lovely day in Harrogate celebrating our first wedding anniversary with my love.”

The following morning, on August 18th, her body was discovered in gardens on Montpellier Hill in the centre of Harrogate.

North Yorkshire Police confirmed they were called shortly after 6.15am and that her death is not currently being treated as suspicious. A report is being prepared for the coroner.

Mr Garside paid tribute to his wife in a post online, calling her his “absolute world” and saying:

“I will love you forever and you will never leave my heart.”

Mrs Garside was well-known in equestrian circles, having won at the prestigious Horse of the Year Show in 2019.

Ribble Valley Riding Club, where she had been a member for more than 20 years, said she would be “sadly missed by everyone in the horse world.”

A memorial page has been set up in her name to raise money for the mental health charity Mind and the Dog’s Trust.

It describes her as “much loved and always remembered” and has raised £1,000 at the time of publication.

Her funeral will take place on 2nd September, with a horse-drawn carriage procession from her home near Blackburn to a nearby church.

An inquest is due to open at North Yorkshire Coroner’s Court on 11th September.

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