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yesterdays international at york was for me the race of the flat season so i set my video to start 15mins before post time to enjoy the build up.
all i got was two blond bimbos chatting about the fashion, tarnya chatting about the extra distance covered in the eclipse, a interview with a trainer,qwick look at the runners parading, a commercial break, a shot of the stands and they were off!
why did ch4 do this? they never used to ,i well remember them taking a long look at the horses in the paddock.
is this down to dumbing down or are their sponsors the tote asking them to do it to stop punters picking the winners.
all in all they ruined the great race for me.If you’d have set your video 5 minutes earlier you would have seen them in the paddock, or it could have been the pre parade ring, but the definitely showed them.
But I agree, when you would rather see the horses going to post, they usually show something relating to fashion these days – in fact, showing fashion at the races seems to be the fashion
Mike
Everytime Fat Al introduces the pre-race ad break with "you’ll miss nothing, see you in a couple of minutes", I think
"nothing, except major clues on how the horses will perform, you fekkin oaf!"
Steve
Fashion again!!
It’s starting to bug me now. Who are channel four trying to cater for on a Tuesday / Wednesday afternoon horse racing programme?
Somebody needs to get a grip, get some balls and stop this nonsense. So Emma Spencer has a new top and the other girl bought a new dress – WHO THE HELL CARES? We tune in to watch the horse racing not that dross.
(Unless Emma has bought some stockings and suspenders she’d like to parade
)I quite like to see the fashion but only coz i’m a 17 year old gurl who likes to get dressed up at every excuse! i hate the amount of breaks c4 takes though, just as your getting into something there is a damn break!
i like to see the features at yards and things it interests me
(((awaits spirited defence of the non-racing coverage by Ugly Mare))).
gc
Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
I’d rather see the fashion than horses. Classic today – "here we have Heather and Michael", "Heather, is on the left…." – no ****, and there was me thinking it was a bloke in drag.
I like to watch fashion related things, but I’ve got Trinny and Susannah and a plethora of other programmes for that…
I want horse racing to be HORSE RACING. It’s not rocket science!!
Why do C4 need NINE presenters lets see there was Thommo, Alastair Down, Emma Spencer, Simon Holt, John Francome, John McCririck, Tania Stevenson, Jm McGrath and some woman in a silly hat.
They all had a piece to camera is c4 racing such a money maker they can afford to pay them all I wonder how much they all would have got paid all together.
They didnt need Holt because Mike Cattermole (racecourse commentator) could have done that didnt need two pundits either McGrath or Francome would do. Thommo, Alastair or Spencer one will do, dont need McCrick and Stevenson again one or none and needless to say no fashion expert
1 commentator 1 presenter 1 expert Racing Uk managaed with 1 presenter and an expert.
Why do C4 need NINE presenters….is c4 racing such a money maker they can afford to pay them all I wonder how much they all would have got paid all together
lucrative business the after-dinner / golf day / whatever appearance circuit, so maybe C4 plans to charge presenters for the exposure it gives them – in which case it would need surely at least an additional nine to cover the Tote sponsorship withdrawal.
as to RUK, this from Dave Nevison’s RFO diary:
"..evening meeting at Sandown…I was guesting on Racing UK… …after this summer, I need the two hundred quid I get from RUK."
best regards
wit
I have great sympathy with my fellow forumites on the lack of racing in a racing programme. However, I think they miss the point.
This is television and the first rule of the media is to get the audience and try to keep it. Ergo, the fashion, banter, the characters, the human interest angle, the emphasis on what happens next(drama). The actual racing and the horses are the sideshow, the attendant goings on are the main circus. If C4 concentrated purely on the sport, they would soon be history.
If you want to focus on the racing, switch immediately(if you can afford it) to RUK and ATR. Both excellent providers of a surrogate day at the races for a fraction of the real cost.
I must confess I enjoy both angles; C4 do a great job at entertaining while RUK/ATR provide just about all a serious racing fan could want as well as being entertaining.
Why does c4 feel it is going to be more appealing by dumbing down?
The contrast with their cricket coverage, which went to great lengths to inform on what is also a very complicated sport, is huge.
A bunch of northern boilers in their matalan gear is not fashion anyway
The number of presenters is a problem. The programme lacks focus and gives the impression of being more concerned with proivding jobs for the boys/girls. Like radio five in its general coverage it comes across as smug and self satisfied
But i have RUK so not bothered frankly…
Why do C4 need NINE presenters lets see there was Thommo, Alastair Down, Emma Spencer, Simon Holt, John Francome, John McCririck, Tania Stevenson, Jm McGrath and some woman in a silly hat.
Because someone else is paying?
Rob
I have great sympathy with my fellow forumites on the lack of racing in a racing programme. However, I think they miss the point.
This is television and the first rule of the media is to get the audience and try to keep it. Ergo, the fashion, banter, the characters, the human interest angle, the emphasis on what happens next(drama). .
Who tunes in to a racing programme to look at fashion?
Royal Ascot maybe but Yorks Ebor meeting? Come on. The only people that tune into that are people who want to watch racing.
I didn’t take much notice of Ch.4 today as I was channel hopping, but I can’t recall seeing the fashion expert today – was she on?
For the record, I am very much of the opinion that horse racing programmes should be about horse racing. Yes I know they have 30-35 minutes to kill between races, but surely more emphasis should be on the racing rather than having some fashion expert gave us commentary on what the people are wearing.
Mike
Flash,
I don’t think everyone tunes in for the racing alone. Many people are interested in the racing but also like to be entertained by the goings on at the track. People are usually interested in other people, and it is good that non racing fans take an interest in what is happening at the track.
Phil Bull described racing as a great triviality and he was also aware that most people take only a passing interest in the races themselves.A great many people are there for the socialising and a day out. By the same token, you can enjoy such a social occasion as a TV spectator, which many people do.
I take my racing quite seriously, as I know you do, yet I am pleased that people who cannot read the form book enjoy a day at the races either in reality or on the box.I don’t think we should get too precious about our favourite sport.
Flash,
I don’t think everyone tunes in for the racing alone. Many people are interested in the racing but also like to be entertained by the goings on at the track. People are usually interested in other people, and it is good that non racing fans take an interest in what is happening at the track.
Phil Bull described racing as a great triviality and he was also aware that most people take only a passing interest in the races themselves.A great many people are there for the socialising and a day out. By the same token, you can enjoy such a social occasion as a TV spectator, which many people do.
I take my racing quite seriously, as I know you do, yet I am pleased that people who cannot read the form book enjoy a day at the races either in reality or on the box.I don’t think we should get too precious about our favourite sport.
I don’t agree with you Artemis in that I don’t see people tuning into York’s coverage unless they want to watch the racing. Its a horse racing programme where is the social aspect unless you are on course? I can’t see anyone tuning in just to see if Emma has a new dress.
I don’t watch the football on Sky to see what the girl on the front row of the main stand is wearing. Its a football programme I tune in to watch the match.
)
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