Animal Rights Spokeswoman on Good Morning Britain

[Tonge]

Kay Burley from Sky News posted a notice on Twitter about forthcoming “discussion” about the GN (“horse race or slaughter fest” – you all know the sort of thing). Good to see Kevin Blake offering to join and provide informed comment. Plenty of people joining in to endorse him too. Hopefully she will take him up on it rather than just have a rabid anti or and some media illiterate Countryside Alliance chinless wonder to reinforce every prejudice. He is also pushing Standup4racing which, while agreeing with Steeplechasing’s views about its current agenda, does have potential in the longer term.

[Cork All Star]

Burley is best avoided. A terrible broadcaster and a hypocrite.

[Tonge]

True (also claimed the National is run at Haydock apparently!). Sky News has decent sized audiences though so important that someone represents the facts.

[Steeplechasing]

LD73 – thanks for that detailed reply.

[Marlingford]

Kevin Blake will certainly be taking one for the team if he chooses to join a debate involving the dreadful Burley.

But, as Tonge says, the sport needs eloquent and credible people out there making its case in front of large audiences.

[cormack15]

He didn’t hear back from Burley or Sky but the Talk channel and Piers Morgan offered to have him on. I missed it and will catch up later but by all accounts Blake had the animal ‘activist’ on the ropes.

Those at BHA Towers should be hanging their heads in shame that it’s taken Kevin Blake to show a bit of initiative to take on the thus far one-sided debate. Fair play to Blake, probably could articulate the arguments as well as anyone, but an absolute embarrassment that the BHA are unable or unwilling to get in front of this.

[Tonge]

Quite. I couldn’t really think of a more suitable advocate than Blake but why is the BHA not leading on this? (Albeit many of us probably think it’s just as well they aren’t).

[cormack15]

Interview is now on catch up on Talk radio – the Piers Morgan show but it isn’t him hosting thankfully.

You need an account to listen but it’s free.

[Cork All Star]

Blake strikes me as being a tough character as well as articulate, so I doubt he would ever be intimidated by anyone.

The problem is Talk TV/Radio has a far smaller audience than Sky News.

As for the BHA, it has been a dreadful week for it. Even by its own low standards. What exactly is the Chief Executive doing to merit her no doubt high salary?

[IanDavies]

And on this week’s episode of Sergeant Bilko, it’s Fort Baxter under threat from the antis as Bilko (played by Kevin Blake) goes on TV to defend the camp, while Colonel Hall (played by Julie Harrington) hides behind a desk while wondering what an army camp is anyway.

I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"

[Cork All Star]

Here is Kevin Blake’s appearance on Talk TV:

Thanks for the kind words re this interview and to @PiersUncensored/@Roolockwood for having me. We are awful for squabbling amongst ourselves in this industry, but I'll you tell what, we have a breed, a sport and an industry that is worth uniting & fighting for. @StandUp4Racing pic.twitter.com/jqnSh9wrvS

— Kevin Blake (@kevinblake2011) April 13, 2023

[Nathan Hughes]

Kevin is brilliant

Charles Darwin to conquer the World

[worzelwaywardlad]

It’s probably best Kevin articulated this as you could imagine someone from the BHA going “ah, erm, sorry, no, what, not my department”

[Cork All Star]

Maybe it is not that important a point in the greater scheme of things but the fact that the animal rights spokesman was not prepared or able to name any trainer he claimed to have visited did rather leave his credibility in shreds.

[Marlingford]

Thanks for posting this CAS. I have huge respect for Kevin Blake and he did an excellent job. That said, he did not get a particularly tough time.

Some of what the animal rights man said was clearly inflammatory nonsense, but some of his points were entirely valid, and emphasised why racing needs to be so proactive in regard to welfare. He was coming across quite well to start with, but I agree he lost credibility as the discussion went on.

[IanDavies]

I think it’s a sad state of affairs when a no more than reasonably intelligent articulate person is praised to the skies – it shows how low the expectation bar is due to the utter ineptness of the nepotism-riven, talentless, BHA.

Blake’s no Stephen Hawkings, he’s just a bright, articulate, guy, one of hundreds of thousands at least in the country.

There should be armies of BHA-employed Blakes standing up for racing, but don’t hold your breath on waiting for it to happen.

I am "The Horse Racing Punter" on Facebook
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ian_Davies_
https://www.facebook.com/ThePointtoPointNHandFlatracingpunter/
It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"

[Cork All Star]

His attempt to draw a moral equivalence between dog fighting and horse racing was the moment he lost credibility. Blake rightly called him out on that nonsense.

[Author]

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