The picture above was taken one hundred years ago – it is the start of the 1920 Epsom Oaks. The winner Charlebelle is seen second from left and she was
THE DERBY RUNNERS Racecard No (draw) HORSE NAME (Trainer/Jockey) 1 (5) AMHRAN NA BHFIANN (Aidan O’Brien/William Buick) Unimpressive debut, (13/16 Curragh – Gold Maze 5th). 3yo career might have some shape,
Went the day well? It rained, it blew, Madame took the shears to the barnet, and the racing turned out to be way better than I had expected – indeed
Well stap me vitals, and call me Greta – nine TV races on a drizzly, blowy Sunday afternoon and 56 runners between them. Just goes to show the vital jobs
Am I alone in thinking that the thousands of people on Bournemouth beach, of which at least 25% appeared to be children, might perhaps have been missing the point? Am
If you thought this week that Time had taken leave of his/her/its senses, then you are not alone. Most of this week seems to have had every minute of each
What might we have learned at Newmarket last week? FAR ABOVE could be very good if he goes to The Prix L’Abbaye, where he will almost certainly get the damp
As various bundles of intelligence thump onto my desk, the headlines make for depressing reading. (I say headlines – I am from the BJ school of thought. If you want
As Brighton, Carlisle, Nottingham and Worcester decide to keep the doors shut this summer, the BHA has published their fixture list and their future racing plans. You can have a
Almost every conversation in the last four months has inevitably contained a number, statistic or formula. Even the barely sentient will rush to tell you what the R number is,
A perfectly ordinary day to start. Brekker, a trip to the opticians to get new specs, as my eyes have been giving me grief since March, some work on the
Exciting news from HM Vineyards, where Her Majesty’s loyal advisers have produced an exciting programme of more. There are now six extra races, (Sorry about the Fake News headline) including
Much like the Monkees 4th hit, “Pleasant Valley Sunday”, the Charcoal was burning everywhere last Sunday – not least at Raceweb Towers. Some delicious Lamb cutlets from a whole carcass
What Ho, tout le monde et Bienvenue to racing “in absentia” from Longchamp. Like a Shakespearian speech, the racing was sans crowds, sans le picnic, sans hacks (well there were
Some years ago, I was introduced to Sam Hoskins who had just launched Hot to Trot, a racing syndicate which, in name at least, had all the potential of becoming
Somewhere in a rat-infested cellar in Hamburg, will gather tonight a little group of Aryan thugs to celebrate the birth of Adolf Hitler. I can’t tell you the address or
Some of you may be familiar with our small Christmas booklet, a collection of little pieces that have caught our fancy, taken our imagination or which we simply thought might
I remember many years ago, at about this time of year, the team launching The Middleham Trainers Association and then the Middleham Open Day. The local MP, Marcus’ dad Roddy,
I am currently receiving some forty messages a day of various hues of kindness, love and in one or two cases, imagined promises. (I say – Ding Dong!) Work has
I have recently felt that God was perhaps attempting to make an early declaration on my behalf, over a distance, I consider way too short. While he carries the ubiquitous
