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King Canute born AD994 -1035 was told by his courtiers ‘O King there will never be another as mighty as you’ he was also proclaimed to be ‘So great he could command the tides of the sea to go back’.
King Canute was a wise King and got his courtiers to stand alongside him whilst he sat on a throne beside the sea at Bosham in West Susex. He demanded the tide of the sea to go back.
He wanted to show he thought no man is greater than God.We now have our modern day version with Betfred Kingfred attempting to hold out against having to pay for televised horseracing from Turf TV.
All his main competition now show all races.So during the best 4 days of racing this week his loyal customers will be missing watching 2 races on 3 days and 4 races on Friday.
A total of 10 races will not be shown from the Cheltenham Festival.His modern day courtier John Haddock the managing director stated in yesterdays R.P. ‘We are not concerned and we’ll live with it. We made our decision not to take Turf TV and we will not be taking it. There are no discussions with them’.
Personally If I were a Betfred customer I would have made my way to the nearest shop showing each and every race.
Can he hold out forever as he will not be showing half of the Epsom Derby day races either or some of the races on Classic days?
Should he be allowed to receive prices on the races he refuses to pay for which in reality are taken from Turf TV?
the only people i see as i walk past the local betfred seem to be watching cartoon racing, greyhounds or clustered around the fruit machines – and there’s never more than 4 people when i seem to walk by
last time i walked in to put some antes on the 1000 and derby there was 1 person in there and it’s a new shop (couple of years old)
on that basis i doubt they’ll worry
I guess its a commercial thing , fact is most betting shop habituees (mugs ), bet on cartoons and roulette now so basically they could well be right in the longer term ,
in any event who cares , :
Ricky
I use betting shops, Ricky.
Gosh. I realise that this statement will make me about as popular as smallpox with the TRF Brains Trust – and with yourself – but there you go. Sometimes you have to take a social risk to get in the party spirit, don’t you.
Does it make me a mug, Ricky? Does it make me imperfect? Does it make me sub-human in some way? Should I be asking for forgiveness?
In the bookmakers I frequent, would you believe me if I told you that most people I know attend for the horses not the machines? For the festivals and the Pattern, the glorious Pattern. Yes, they might stick a ten bob bit into the roulette machine, but these tales of grown blokes losing their cars, flats and wives to Ladbrokes on the spin of a wheel aren’t really my experience. I’m sure these Dickensian tales play out somewhere, don’t get me wrong, but I haven’t seen it personally.
(I’ve seen many, many people lose their marbles however – for example when the dreadful Davy Russell leaves it three hours too late on a heavily backed Ferdy Murphy handicapper in the Billy Hill – but that’s about the extent of my experience of personal tragedy).
Last time I was in my local bookmakers, I was involved in a long debate about the merits as a trainer of Miss Mandy Rowlands. A couple of patrons had had shares in horses with the Lower Blidworth handler. It got quite heated, the debate. Overall, the pros beat the antis, but certainly, the level of racing knowledge on display from some ancient judges really wouldn’t qualify for your rather disrespectful and far-reaching attribution, Ricky. Mugs? Nah.
Admittedly, like Southwell yesterday, its an older crowd. Plenty of ingot neck chains, nylon shirts and the faint smell of Grecian 2000. But mugs? I’ve encountered more mugs in a Poundshop and on the Internet than I ever have in a bookies.
And let’s face it; on the Net (which I assume you’re holding up as the Gold Standard experience in this case) you’ll find far more people experiencing suicidal ideations because of their unrelenting isolation than you ever will in a bookies shop, where you can at least see like, er, people walking down the High Street through the window.
Anyway, just felt I had to defend the humble betting shop habituee/PC illiterate from yet another attack. No offence. Can’t forget where I came from, you see.
Best of luck today.I popped into my local Fred Done emporium to have a 10p Placepot perm this week. I was the only person backing on the horses. The other 3 people in there were all betting on roulette. I was astonished as I brushed past one (clutching a wad of 50 pound notes) that he had 560 pounds credit on the machine. Not sure if he was just feeding it or if they were actual winnings.
I thought it all rather sad.
Luckily I can watch RUK at work or I’d go to Ladbrokes (200 yards further away) to watch Cheltenham.
Nice post, Max!
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 only use betting shops, I can’t have the exchanges it’s not for me.
great post Max, thanks for that, I hope people take time to read it, Ricky forgets himself sometimes.
Also there are some people in the betting shops that I use win more on the roulette than they’ve ever won on the horses, if that’s what they want to do then why not let them get on with it? If my enjoyment of horse racing was only to win money then I’d soon get bored with it all, and also if it was all about money and I could win more playing roulette than I could at the racing then I’m sure I’d go down the roulette playing road too. I’m glad horse racing isn’t all about betting for me.
Thanks Seagull for posting that. I wasn’t aware of it and we do visit our not so local BetFred occasionally. Bit of a shame though.
I love the betting shops today, they make a pleasant escape for half hour or so, from the noise and fuss of the High Street, and some people closest to my heart have been regulars for years.
Another especially good post from you Max – you’re making a habit of this
i went to fred dones about 4 yrs ago to place £50 on a 7/4 shot,30 seconds before the off i was trying to get my bet on, but the staff member who was taking the bets was busy talking to her neighbour who had just popped in,she got the bet on 3 seconds after the off 7f race, went to collect my winnings and she said the bet was void. she now works in somerfields,i only bet online now
Thanks everyone. I think one of the things that sets TRF apart from the other place is tolerance and unlike the opinion of a certain other poster the other week, I’ve always felt the place is a broad church and that is the strength. We should fight for that.
I’ve just been to Southwell for the last three races and because of the wind, I spent my time in the betting concourse. I’ve never seen the old lady so busy – all the regulars were wandering around in a state of shock! The food ran out and there were queues with the six bookies to get bets on. There were whispers that Sir Alex Ferguson and Wayne Rooney had made an appearance – as well as the delightful Claire King, though I didn’t see them.
To agree with MP, when that bumper jolly ridden by "Chocolate" Thornton went in at Huntingdon. I have never heard a roar like it at Southwell. Seems that everyone in there was on it. I like that connectivity; could do with that everyday up there, though I doubt the locals would agree with me.
Hey Max , great post , apologies if I caused any offence i didnt mean any , as Jim says I forget myself sometimes ,and he could be right
overall though , for me the betting shop is a place for mugs , I just cant have the cartoons and the roulette etc , as well as the non stop verbal brain stopping , mind numbing tripe being spoken, but if you enjoy it great stuff and why not indeed
Overall though I can see the sense in what Fred Done is doing , longer term british horse racing may no longer be the major selling
point , time will tellanyway well done again for the brilliant post , I do admire your point of view
cheers
Ricky
No worries Ricky.
You didn’t cause any offence; it’s just that before 1998 I’ll bet ninety percent of various forumites the cyberworld over spent their lives in betting shops and people are quick to forget.
Best of luck tomorrow: Chelters, Laddies or RUK – it looks horrible.
I loiks bettin shoops i do. Thay gwate plaices 4 fun. the good laydee make e tee she do. I dwink fwom cup not mug.
I loiks bettin shoops i do. Thay gwate plaices 4 fun. the good laydee make e tee she do. I dwink fwom cup not mug.
One StealI love the betting shop, escpecially when betting on the flat and there are a few meetings running, you dont have to constantly flick between internet pages, you just have to turn your head in a direction and and youve got the form and the markets etc. Plus as you say the crack (or craic) can be great.
I think someones opinion of bookmakers will be formed on the ones they go to. I used to go to one in Wooton Bassett near swindon and there generally wasnt much crack in there, and those that were actually betting on horses knew very little about them, I remember there was an old bloke with a deer stalker, tweed trousers tucked into his socks etc, and he was a right racing post hogging ignorant git, always wanted to slap him.
The Bookies in Northern Ireland are all generally quite rough places, they are all a bit armed robbery proofed like Brick Tops Bookies in Snatch, and would have dead carbon copy slips all over the place and always some dodgy dealings going on, but a brilliant laugh and the odd person who knows a thing or two. They have betting slips in pubs at the bars for all the nearest bookies with racing on the TV so you can just fill them in while your having a drink (bad idea), but everyones got to learn that lesson somewhere.
My nearest one at the minute is 7 miles away and is a little william hills in north yorkshire. It is also the nearest bookies of Ferdy Murphys yard, and a few smaller yards and it is usually full of stable workers and work riders etc. There is also a retired newspaper tipster and supposedly that bloke who won the million the other week, but dont know the bloke from adam, as Im not in everyday and he just goes anywhere, he placed his bet in thirsk. The cracks brilliant at times and everyone knows who everyone has backed and theres no apparent age gap. I think most people stick their spare change in the roullettes and everyone knows who the problem gamblers are taht come in and stick their full wage in.
I absolutely love the environment of the bookies (admittedly I preferred them when you could smoke though), and anytime Ive been to a racecourse I have spent a great deal of time in the betting shops too, just because its the environment that comes most natural to me.
I think Fred Done will come round eventually to Turf TV as he will start to make a loss if he doesnt. I understand his point but its a war of attrition for him and with all the other bookies already on Turf TV it wont even make Turf TV flinch if he chooses not to subscribe.
Some good replies regarding betting shops in general.
The stance taken by Fred Done does seem to go against the considered judgement taken by the boards of Hills, Corals and Ladbrokes.
Judging by recent profits made by the ‘big 3’ it seems to me that Dones can afford it. To someone who would want if possible to watch how my selections performs I would go to a shop that had live pictures as against one that had an ‘un official commentary’.
Yes when all of the shop are on the same horse and it wins it will always beat clicking away on betfair. Dunbridge Native was a good example of that yesterday!
There are some ‘right nutters’ in Brighton betting shops.
One has the nickname of ‘Loony Tunes’ as he blows a mouth organ when his horse is running if it looks like winning the noise gets faster and faster and louder and louder but there are often times he stops ‘playing’ mid note as it falls over!There is also the regular Chinese guys selling DVDs, shoplifters knocking out stolen goods and people selling dodgy fags and baccy.
When they are not around there sometimes is horse racing to follow.
Best of luck today.
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