Media coverage Horseracing in Great Britain

tv presenter, john mccririck

there 2 dedicated horse racing channels on british digital television - @ races (free air) , racing uk (subscription only). daily broadcasts of british race meetings split between 2 according contracts arranged racecourses , racecourse owning groups. saturday racing , key midweek festival meetings broadcast on terrestrial television channel 4, have been covering sport since 1984. channel broadcasts four-hour afternoon programme of live racing , hour-long weekly magazine show on saturday mornings called morning line. since start of 2013, network s horse racing output has been fronted claire balding, support other presenters such nick luck, jim mcgrath, alice plunkett , mick fitzgerald.

for many years, racing broadcast on bbc, pioneered coverage of sport in 1950s. network retained rights key race meetings, such grand national, royal ascot , derby until 2012 when outbid rights channel 4. bbc broadcast of key moments in history of british horse racing, such red rum winning third grand national , 1967 victory of foinavon in same race after of field fell @ same fence. itv began show horse racing in first weeks on air in 1955, , in 1970s provided alternative bbc coverage itv 7 featured part of channel s world of sport programme. lasted until 1980s, when coverage gradually transferred channel 4.

as other sports, many of people have presented racing on tv through years have become inseparably linked racing in public consciousness. foremost among these many years bbc s sir peter o sullevan, known voice of racing , commentated on 50 grand nationals. channel 4 s recognisable racing figure john mccririck, famed eccentric dress sense , use of bookmakers sign language tic-tac . channel 4 chose not renew contract when became sole terrestrial racing broadcaster in 2013, leading mccririck sue them on grounds of ageism.