Tell us your first Cheltenham Festival memory?

I have vague recollections of watching the 1989 Cheltenham Gold Cup on television at home. At the time I didn’t even know the name of the gallant grey who battled up the hill in atrocious conditions but years later I came to realise just how significant Desert Orchid was to the sport.

What was your best day’s racing or betting at the Festival?

From a punting point of view, it was the 2007 Champion Hurdle. A few of us were over from Goffs for the day, bumped into John Carr in the paddock before the big race and he said he was very confident about his horse’s chances! We got on at 20/1 and Sublimity duly rocked up the hill under the ultra-stylish Philip Carberry.

Any bad/funny experiences you’d like to tell us about?

Following Sublimity’s Champion Hurdle I had money burning a hole in my pocket so I decided to buy a particularly nice (and very large!) print of Arkle, without any thought of how I was going to get it back to Ireland. We made it back to Bristol airport later that evening and proceeded to hand over the rest of my Sublimity winnings to the airline to check Arkle into the hold. That was the last I ever saw of it, it went missing and never turned up!

Is there any particular race at the meeting you’ve always been lucky in?

To be honest I have a woeful record when it comes to selecting winners at the Festival, and I find the more dogmatic I am about a horse the more wrong I will prove to be! A few years ago I was a last minute call up for a well attended Cheltenham Preview Night Panel in London and was adamant that Faugheen wouldn’t jump well enough to win any of the novice hurdles at Cheltenham. I still have yet to live that one down!

What horse gave you your biggest win/thrill at Cheltenham?

Without a doubt Hardy Eustace’s second Champion Hurdle success in 2005 when he made all under a beautifully-judged front running-ride from Conor O’Dwyer to see off Harchibald and Brave Inca. It was a race for the ages, substance over style, and to make it even sweeter the first three home were all Goffs graduates.

What horse was your biggest heartbreak loser at Cheltenham?

Annie Power infamous final hurdle fall in the 2015 Mares’ Hurdle. Having been beaten the previous year in the Stayers’ Hurdle it began to look as if her Cheltenham Festival winning chances were numbered, but thankfully she came bouncing back the following year to successfully deputise for Faugheen in the Champion Hurdle.

Briefly describe your standard Cheltenham Festival week?

For the past 10 years I have been based in Racing TV’s studios in London, so this year I am very much looking forward to attending in person for at least a couple of days of the Festival, while I also look forward to watching Racing TV’s excellent coverage of the event!

What race are you most looking forward to at the 2022 Festival?

This year’s Supreme Novices’ looks an absolute cracker and if they all turn up the only winner will be racing! At Goffs UK we honestly won’t know who to cheer for as Jonbon and Constitution Hill are both graduates of Goffs UK point-to-point sales - they appear to be different characters but both imbued with limitless talent and potential. ?