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BBC covering one of the springtime bank holiday fixtures at Chepstow that had at least one hunter chase.
Ah, those were the days of the men’s and ladies’ champion hunter chases both being run at all (the men’s currently isn’t), and on the same end-of-season card.
The renewals of Whit Monday (May 27th) 1985 were definitely televised by the Beeb. I had the "pleasure" of watching a goodly chunk of pocket money go west in the Diners Club men’s race when Olive Press (David MacTaggart) was knocked over four out – not, I think, that she’d quite have got to eventual winner Urser in time.
The ladies’ race, meanwhile, was sponsored by RMC Group and went to the legendary Flying Ace, as did many other races that term (including the Horse & Hound only four days later). But for a lost weight cloth and consequent disqualification at Kelso, Doreen Calder’s charge would have registered a perfect 11 wins out of 11 during 1984-5.
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.
Some of my favourite horses in the days of lots of National Hunt meetings on Bank Holidays in the early 1980s were those that ran in the hunter chases.
Queensberry Lad was a regular winner at northern and Scottish courses, including Hexham and Perth.
Mr Mellors was a regular winner at Fakenham, especially on Banks Holiday Mondays, no doubt watched by Iain Mackenzie.
I also liked the veteran Mac Vidi and note from the internet that there is a video available about him.
The information with it reads: "This is the story of one of the most remarkable racehorses of all time. Bred from a racing throw-out, who cost just £100, Mac Vidi became the racing public’s hero, when at the ages of 14 and 15 he won a string of top class races and was second in Steeplechasing’s Blue Riband, the Cheltenham Gold Cup. His owner-breeder-trainer is also from a most unlikely background.
"This documentary relates how together, after many trials and tribulations, they aimed for the stars and achieved what the experts thought was impossible. Narrated by Mac Vidi’s owner, Pam Melville (nee Neal)."
I also remember that remarkable veteran, Sonny Somers, who won two races at the age of 18 at Lingfield and Southwell, trained by Fred Winter.
I remember, as a student, reading about Sonny Somers in articles in newspapers and being fascinated by his longevity.
Ben de Haan rode Sonny Somers to his final victory, in a handicap chase at Lingfield on February 28, 1980.
De Haan said: "He was a real schoolmaster and got quite a lot of jockeys going. He was a character and tough as old boots. He was a tough little horse and taught us younger jockeys a lot."
At the other end of the age scale, I loved the flying sprinter Spindrifter, who equalled the number of wins by a two-year-old with a succession of victories at northern and Scottish courses in the early 1980s, trained by Sir Mark Prescott and ridden by George Duffield.
He went on to win a race at Hamilton as a three-year-old before tragically dying in a freak accident. He had a race named after him at Pontefract, one of his most successful courses, with the Spindrifter Sprint. His owner was Graham Waters.the Fairlawne Chase at Windsor
I do miss the jumps racing at Windsor. Remember Channel 4 showed it a few times on New Years Day along with Cheltenham if it wasn’t frozen off, and then the BBC showed racing from there while Ascot was being rebuilt. Should bring it back.
I also liked the veteran Mac Vidi and note from the internet that there is a video available about him.
The information with it reads: "This is the story of one of the most remarkable racehorses of all time. Bred from a racing throw-out, who cost just £100, Mac Vidi became the racing public’s hero, when at the ages of 14 and 15 he won a string of top class races and was second in Steeplechasing’s Blue Riband, the Cheltenham Gold Cup. His owner-breeder-trainer is also from a most unlikely background.
"This documentary relates how together, after many trials and tribulations, they aimed for the stars and achieved what the experts thought was impossible. Narrated by Mac Vidi’s owner, Pam Melville (nee Neal)."I’ve watched this – bought it as a birthday present once for Geoff Sanderson, former assistant trainer of Quixall Crossett. It seemed very appropriate.
The whole enterprise became possible as Mrs Melville received an early VCR as a prize for one of Mac Vidi’s early wins, so had something to on which to play the Racetech videos of all his subsequent wins (having bought them en bloc
).
It’s an exhaustive video at around three hours long, but the comprehensiveness and rarity of some of the footage makes it hugely worth while. You just might want to plug your ears when she temporarily drifts off into an appreciation of Mrs Thatcher, 1979 and all that…
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.
For the interest of several people in this thread, here is my definitive record of UK TV and radio racing coverage, 1955-1996:
Part 1: http://www.mediafire.com/view/?11dq2qem356h1xa
Part 2: http://www.mediafire.com/view/?89naf8y8gq0v8yc
Part 3: http://www.mediafire.com/view/?ji4v5qnm1izmpra
Part 4: http://www.mediafire.com/view/?w7keexce6iz4auc
Robin Carmody
For the interest of several people in this thread, here is my definitive record of UK TV and radio racing coverage, 1955-1996:
Robin Carmody
Thanks very much indeed, Robin. A real labour of love, seemingly. Definitive is the word.
What struck me was the sheer amount of BBC coverage in the 1980s and 1990s. Virtually every Saturday, not to mention some Sunday and midweek coverage.
Certainly a testament to times gone by, especially with the coverage of Glorious Goodwood and numerous Newbury meetings on the BBC.
Who could have predicted, even a few months ago, that we will soon be seeing the end of ALL coverage on the BBC? Surely even the Beeb’s severest critics would not really want that.
It was interesting to see Phoenix Park cropping up several times in the BBC coverage.
It was noticeable how much Irish and French coverage there was on the BBC in those days.
I had almost forgotten that the Channel 4 coverage very rarely had double-headers in those days, let alone the triple-headers or more we sometimes get.
Chepstow was notable for the amount of BBC coverage it got for its jumps meetings in those days. I always used to think Chepstow televised well.Based on my research, now that Perth has appeared on Channel 4, the only long-standing, still-existing racecourses never to have appeared on terrestrial TV are Cartmel and Ludlow – although some ITV regions may not have taken any of the few days’ racing ever shown from Yarmouth.
I keep trying to remember when Sedgefield was on terrestrial television and which channel it was.
I think the BBC has been mentioned. I don’t think I have seen the course featured in a terrestrial broadcast but I always like watching it on At The Races.
The same goes for Taunton, Folkestone, Pontefract, Yarmouth and Exeter. I’m blowed if I can recall when those courses were on terrestrial television.
Any reminders of dates would be welcome. The answers will be in the records posted on this thread but I haven’t stumbled across them yet…Channel 4 have shown Exeter, a recent New Years Day when Lee McKenzie did the commentary.
For the interest of several people in this thread, here is my definitive record of UK TV and radio racing coverage, 1955-1996:
Robin Carmody
Thanks very much indeed, Robin. A real labour of love, seemingly. Definitive is the word.
What struck me was the sheer amount of BBC coverage in the 1980s and 1990s. Virtually every Saturday, not to mention some Sunday and midweek coverage.
Certainly a testament to times gone by, especially with the coverage of Glorious Goodwood and numerous Newbury meetings on the BBC.
Who could have predicted, even a few months ago, that we will soon be seeing the end of ALL coverage on the BBC? Surely even the Beeb’s severest critics would not really want that.
It was interesting to see Phoenix Park cropping up several times in the BBC coverage.
It was noticeable how much Irish and French coverage there was on the BBC in those days.
I had almost forgotten that the Channel 4 coverage very rarely had double-headers in those days, let alone the triple-headers or more we sometimes get.
Chepstow was notable for the amount of BBC coverage it got for its jumps meetings in those days. I always used to think Chepstow televised well.I’m sure similar sentiments were expressed over the coverage of Test Matches on the BBC Television. The truth is that the BBC invested far too much in its coverage of the National last year under the assumption that it was horse racing. Following the horse on the One Show proved to be an unfortunate PR disaster, but those who try to suggest that the BBC did not try to engage the public’s fascination with the National are wrong.
Off topic (sorry) for a second having mentioned Chepstow why do ATR never have a reporter at Chepstow the last few meets at least. Is there a reason or am I just imagining it?
Channel 4 have shown Exeter, a recent New Years Day when Lee McKenzie did the commentary.
Thanks, Phil. Of course! I have seen Exeter on Channel 4 on New Year’s Day. It’s an interesting course to see on television but I remember that the meeting has bitten the dust because of the weather on at least one occasion when it was due to be televised on Channel 4.
Still scratching my head about Sedgefield….
Tommo has supported a race there in memory of his father, Stanley Thompson, and I remember that he has sometimes arranged to be the course commentator for that meeting, no doubt as a further tribute to his father. The race is Stanley Thompson Memorial Open Hunters’ Chase.Sedgefield was shown on Grandstand on a number of occasions in the 1960s, and as part of the ITV Seven quite a few times in the 1970s.
Taunton appeared once on World of Sport, in 1968.
Yarmouth made a few midweek appearances on ITV in the early 1970s – sometimes being shown in preference to the first two days of Ayr’s Western Meeting – though as I said not all regions took this coverage.
Pontefract I think only appeared on terrestrial TV in the black and white era; ITV first went there in 1958.
Folkestone made at least one ITV appearance in the 1960s, and was on Channel 4 on Derby Day in 2006, while Doncaster was being rebuilt.
Mass television came along just before the course closures of the 1960s, and the following defunct courses appeared on TV: Manchester (the first venue outside the south-east to be covered, when TV had just arrived in the North in 1951), Bogside (the first Scottish track to be covered in 1953), Lincoln, Hurst Park, Alexandra Park, Birmingham, Wye (though only for one day in 1959, which according to The Times was only shown in the Midlands, despite the course being in the Southern area), Lanark, Stockton / Teesside Park.
65-74 listings now revised and available here:
http://www.mediafire.com/view/?g7x7ousydb8jja0
Had to make a slight revision to the 86-96 listings as well (sorry, I’m a perfectionist)
Now at http://www.mediafire.com/view/?8lv6rzpth0wra1f
Sedgefield was shown on Grandstand on a number of occasions in the 1960s, and as part of the ITV Seven quite a few times in the 1970s.
Taunton appeared once on World of Sport, in 1968.
Yarmouth made a few midweek appearances on ITV in the early 1970s – sometimes being shown in preference to the first two days of Ayr’s Western Meeting – though as I said not all regions took this coverage.
Pontefract I think only appeared on terrestrial TV in the black and white era; ITV first went there in 1958.
Folkestone made at least one ITV appearance in the 1960s, and was on Channel 4 on Derby Day in 2006, while Doncaster was being rebuilt.Fascinating stuff. Thanks very much.
Seems amazing Sedgefield was shown on Grandstand, considering the mainly modest fare at the course, leaving aside good races like the Durham National. Mind you, I seem to remember it staged its richest day’s racing recently.
Charlie Moore has been a big asset as clerk of the course. They are quite enterprising at Sedgefield in having sponsorship of individual fences, such as the Paxtons Fence and before that the Andrews Fence.
No wonder I have never seen Taunton and Pontefract on terrestrial television if the only appearances were so long ago. I suppose as Pontefract never seems to race on Saturdays and Taunton always used to favour Thursdays, it’s not surprising they haven’t really featured on terrestrial TV.
I do now remember seeing Folkestone on Derby Day.
Certainly no surprise that Ludlow has never been on terrestrial TV. It’s a very strange place to visit, with the roads crossing the course.
The whole enterprise became possible as Mrs Melville received an early VCR as a prize for one of Mac Vidi’s early wins, so had something to on which to play the Racetech videos of all his subsequent wins (having bought them 
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