The Paddock and The Pavilion - The Horse Racing and Cricket Podcast

Happy 80th Birthday Richard Pitman

In this celebratory podcast we trace the remarkable racing journey of the Cheltenham boy who played truant from school to go to the races. 

With the help of close friends and racing colleagues we follow his stories of joy and heartbreak at the Festival, Crisp’s gallant battle with Red Rum in the 1973 Grand National and 37 years working as part of the BBC racing team. 

Capture the warmth and affection in which he is held in the racing world. 

If you love your racing this is a treat. 

Special thanks to all our guests, former jockey and now world class sculptor Phillip Blacker, Newmarket trainer Gay Kelleway, whose father Paul rode with Richard at Fred Winter's yard in the 1960s and 1970s, young racing journalist Sam Martin, writer Tania Kindersley, who is part of the charity Horseback UK, 1980 Grand National winning jockey Charlie Fenwick and author and racing historian Chris Pitt.

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Emily Johnson has her dream job as the resident artist at Cheltenham racecourse.  In our first horse racing podcast of 2023 Emily reveals how a barbecue triggered a career change which set her on the road to becoming a successful professional equine artist. It seems that Emily’s love of art had never left her.

Emily talks about the artists she admires, how she got the job at the home of jump racing in October 2022, how she is settling in and what she does on a race day. With only one more day’s racing until The Festival begins on March 14 the young artist is looking ahead to working at the Olympics of jump racing.

Enjoy following Emily’s Road to Cheltenham, it’s inspiring. 

www.emilyjohnsonfineart.co.uk

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England were back in Test action in Pakistan in December and returning to the podcast to review the series is our cricketing expert, Roland Butcher.

The former England International gives his opinion on England’s remarkable clean sweep which was so unexpected considering their previous tours of Pakistan. England had before the tour only won two Tests of their twenty four Test matches in Pakistan.

Roland discusses the role of England captain Ben Stokes, who has now led the side to victory in nine of the last ten Test matches since his appointment, the run scoring of man of the series Harry Brook, the bowling attack, which out bowled the hosts and the impact of 18 year old debutant Rehan Ahmed

But with sterner Test to come Roland looks ahead to the Ashes in the summer together with his prediction for the five-match series.

We also hear about Roland’s new appointment as a West Indies selector.

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The first Under 19 Women’s Cricket World Cup is due to start on Saturday 14 January in South Africa.

Capture what the competition means to England off spinner Emma Marlow who joined the show shortly before she left for her first overseas cricket assignment.

Emma has had a whirlwind two years rising from the Northern Diamonds Academy to a professional contract with them. Along the way the young off spinner has enjoyed success with the Diamonds in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy Final at Lord’s in addition to being part of the Trent Rockets squad during last season’s Hundred competition.

Sue Strachan, who is Scotland’s Women’s tour manager and going to South Africa as the Scotland under 19 medical liaison officer also joined in to give her views on their chances at this historic tournament for the women’s game.

England play their opening T20 game on Sunday 15 January against Zimbabwe. Could they do what the Lionesses did in the summer and win the trophy?

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In February 2022 Patrick Foster released his new book Might Bite, the secret life of a gambling addict. Since then, Patrick has been giving something back and making a difference travelling the globe talking at schools, colleges, sporting organisations and workplaces about the perils of gambling addiction and the issue of mental health.

Our 2023 programme begins with the former professional cricketer talking about his presentations working for Epic Risk Management. What they deliver and the impact they have made to young people. Patrick also speaks of his admiration for England captain Ben Stokes, who has himself opened up about his own mental health problems.

We hear Patrick’s views on Ben Stokes’s leadership of this exciting England men’s side together with his thoughts on the forthcoming Ashes matches for both the Men and women’s sides.

It has been a fulfilling year for Patrick after his own troubles which were compelling told in Might Bite, he captained his club side Horspath CC, his son Freddie was born in September and as he says "If I've reached lots of people that's great if I have helped one, even better"

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In the Pavilion

What was it like to…. Play a Boxing Day Ashes Test?

In Episode 8 of a series where I pose the question ‘What was it like to….

I spoke to Dennis Amiss England’s leading batsman at the time about playing in a Boxing Day Test at the MCG in 1974 along with his and the team’s experiences in this dramatic series.

Dennis reflects back on a compelling Ashes series where the England side came up against one of, the most frightening pace attacks in Test Match history, Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson.

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The inspiring work of Natalie O’Rourke to save Park Lane stables in south west, London was one of the good news stories of 2021. 

In this Christmas Day edition Natalie, the Manager of Park Lane is back on the podcast to update us on her recent MBE award, book signings of her best seller Only Heroes and Horses, including a trip to Newmarket and the latest news of the move back to their Park Lane base in Teddington from their current home in Petersham.

We also hear about her involvement with Brentford FC through the work of ‘Woody welcomes’ an initiative at the premiership club for her son Woody, who has downs syndrome, to welcome other people with disabilities at each Brentford home match. Got to www.woodywelcomes.com for more information.

Put aside just over half an hour for a bit of positivity. Park Lane stables, The People’s Stables.

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Listen to my interview with Natalie O'Rourke, the Manager of Park Lane stables & help them in their chase to raise £1m by 25 February. Hear the heartwarming story of the family run inner city South West London riding school who do fantastic RDA (Riding for the disabled) work for children & adults giving them the chance to ride & care for horses and ponies. They also have a thriving pony club section. www.crowdfunder.co.uk/save-our-stables#start Please subscribe to us on Apple podcasts, Google, Soundcloud, Spotify or Stitcher Connect with us on Twitter & Facebook @ThePaddandPav

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Harry Swan, 20 is part of a racing dynasty. From the Osborne’s, the Chaloner’s, the Hyde’s and not forgetting the Swan’s, his father Charlie was a nine-time Irish Champion jockey, he was destined to ride horses.

Harry talks about how he started riding ponies, the influence of his mother and winning an eventing silver medal. We hear about his first ride, his first winner at Worcester on Stacey Sue and his Grade 3 success riding On Eagles Wings at Naas.

In 2022 Harry’s career has moved up a gear with rides for leading trainer Gordon Elliott at the Cheltenham festival where he came 4th of twenty in the Kim Muir Challenge Cup Amateur Jockeys' Handicap Chase on Fakir D’alene, and in the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse.

Currently an amateur jockey Harry is juggling his riding career with studying for a degree.

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Ryan Campbell has had an eventful year. He began the year as the coach of the Netherlands, nearly died in April after a cardiac arrest, came back to lead The Netherlands to success in the T20 World Cup and on 1 December was appointed the Head Coach of Durham County Cricket Club.

The former Australian international wicket keeper batter talks through the dramatic events of April 2022 when he collapsed in a school playground on a family day out which led to him being in an induced coma for seven days with at one stage only a 7% chance of survival. But survive he did like Christian Eriksen, the Denmark and Manchester United footballer to lead the Dutch to the Super 12s at the T20 World Cup and victories over Test playing nations Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Ryan opens up about that fateful day in April, his new perspective on life, the T20 World Cup along with his own playing career for Western Australia, Australia, and Hong Kong.

This is an inspiring story of a man who beat death many times in 2022 because as he said, “I am not a quitter, I never quit anything in my life”.

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