Over The
Stable Door

by JoJo O'Neill

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    The Racing Life of Jenny Carr
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jul 19
    • 5 min

    The Racing Life of Jenny Carr

    ‘I’m still known as Mad Jenny Carr around home.’ Racing may not have been the only crazy aspect to Jenny's life but it was a part of her...
    1,1000
    An Interview with Former Trainer Robin Dickin
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jul 12
    • 6 min

    An Interview with Former Trainer Robin Dickin

    Robin Dickin, a Shropshire lad born in Ludlow, rode his first winner on his first ride in August 1967 at Warwick over five furlongs. The...
    5400
    An Interview with Jockey Stan Sheppard
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jul 5
    • 4 min

    An Interview with Jockey Stan Sheppard

    Jockey Stan Sheppard had a brilliant season. Yet, with his family pedigree, it isn’t surprising. His Grandfather, Roger Guilding, rode...
    6040
    June 2022 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jun 28
    • 7 min

    June 2022 Blog

    June has been a busy month, filled with sunny days and the eager anticipation of horses soon to be coming back into training. Some horses...
    3741
    The Racing Life of Britt Cowper
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jun 22
    • 8 min

    The Racing Life of Britt Cowper

    Britt Hounslow, nee Cowper, has lived in a few places… ‘I was born up the road from Old Trafford in Manchester in August 1965 (yes I am...
    1790
    An Interview with Top Trainer Tim Easterby
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jun 14
    • 3 min

    An Interview with Top Trainer Tim Easterby

    To the question, at what point growing up did you know you wished to be a trainer? Tim Easterby, 60, answered a simple but heartfelt,...
    1700
    An Interview with Racing Photographer Dominic James
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jun 8
    • 11 min

    An Interview with Racing Photographer Dominic James

    Previously, Dominic James was a graphic designer as well as a former owner of a design agency, but he never strayed far from his love of...
    610
    Deeds not Words
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jun 2
    • 3 min

    Deeds not Words

    Emily Davison was an educated woman. She had been a literature student at Royal Holloway College and had self-funded her studies at...
    440
    May 2022 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • May 26
    • 6 min

    May 2022 Blog

    May hasn't been that quiet and relaxed. The yard stayed busy. Many horses went out to the fields on their holidays, but a lot of...
    470
    An Interview with Champion Conditional Kevin Brogan
    Jo O'Neill
    • May 18
    • 4 min

    An Interview with Champion Conditional Kevin Brogan

    In winning the Conditional Jockey’s Championship, Kevin Brogan, 22, has followed in the footsteps of Sir AP McCoy, Harry Cobden and his...
    2351
    Michael Appleby's Top Team
    Jo O'Neill
    • May 12
    • 6 min

    Michael Appleby's Top Team

    Here is a selection of short interviews with a range of trainer Michael Appleby’s staff, all recorded in person by Kirsty Whitbread....
    3390
    An Interview with Michael Appleby, Racehorse Trainer
    Jo O'Neill
    • May 6
    • 2 min

    An Interview with Michael Appleby, Racehorse Trainer

    Michael ‘Mick’ Appleby did not have a horsey childhood. Mick’s Grandfather took him along to their local tracks of Pontefract and...
    3080
    April 2022 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • Apr 26
    • 6 min

    April 2022 Blog

    April can be summed up as winners, winners and more winners. It was a glorious end to a good season. We notched up eighty-two victories,...
    3541
    St. Paddy's Days
    Jo O'Neill
    • Apr 19
    • 8 min

    St. Paddy's Days

    An Interview with Groom Paddy Trainor 'I have my real family, Sam and Shannon are my rocks, they’ve stood by me through injuries and we...
    2971
    The Racing Department of Haddon Training
    Jo O'Neill
    • Apr 10
    • 10 min

    The Racing Department of Haddon Training

    Haddon Training provides qualifications within the working environment throughout England and Wales in many equestrian disciplines,...
    880
    March 2022 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • Mar 28
    • 7 min

    March 2022 Blog

    March started in the best way with File Illico (Lilo) winning at Leicester for owner, the Honourable Mrs Lizzie Wills, and groom Alex...
    6721
    An Interview with Trainer Adrian Wintle
    Jo O'Neill
    • Mar 23
    • 6 min

    An Interview with Trainer Adrian Wintle

    ‘I love what I do,’ declares trainer Adrian Wintle. The former top amateur jockey reflects on a successful riding career in which he rode...
    6530
    19th March 2010
    Jo O'Neill
    • Mar 9
    • 8 min

    19th March 2010

    I could not believe that I was actually leading up in the Cheltenham Gold Cup - the biggest race of the National Hunt season. As a groom,...
    3262
    February 2022 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • Mar 2
    • 6 min

    February 2022 Blog

    I hadn’t fallen off for a couple of seasons, so I was well overdue. The string was trotting down the new path towards the bottom of the...
    5671
    An Interview with Former Owners George and Angie Malde
    Jo O'Neill
    • Feb 24
    • 3 min

    An Interview with Former Owners George and Angie Malde

    George and Angie Malde had a lot of fun owning several successful racehorses. These include dual Welsh National winner Bonanza Boy who,...
    3190
    The Racing Life of Karen Sharpe
    Jo O'Neill
    • Feb 18
    • 6 min

    The Racing Life of Karen Sharpe

    An Interview with Karen Sharpe: Regional Liaison for the IJF Karen Sharpe works for the Injured Jockeys’ Fund in the role of Regional...
    7730
    An Interview with Jockey Richie McLernon
    Jo O'Neill
    • Feb 10
    • 4 min

    An Interview with Jockey Richie McLernon

    Richard ‘Richie’ McLernon, 35, is from Mallow in County Cork and has many family connections to racing. ‘I was born into a racing family...
    1,1271
    January 2022 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • Feb 1
    • 8 min

    January 2022 Blog

    We started 2022 in the best way when Judicial Law won over hurdles at Exeter. It was our fiftieth winner of the season but, the middle of...
    6241
    An Interview with Head Lad Wayne Jones
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jan 27
    • 3 min

    An Interview with Head Lad Wayne Jones

    Wayne Jones describes his childhood as ‘not particularly horsey’ but that did not stop his adolescent dreams of being a jockey. He grew...
    3250
    An Interview with Eloise Quayle - Clerk of the Course at Newcastle Racecourse
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jan 21
    • 9 min

    An Interview with Eloise Quayle - Clerk of the Course at Newcastle Racecourse

    Eloise Quayle enjoyed a pony-mad childhood in Morpeth, Northumberland, surrounded by a few ponies, her mum’s ex-racehorse and a horse...
    2761
    An Interview with Hannah Dean - Head of Travelling to Ben Pauling
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jan 13
    • 3 min

    An Interview with Hannah Dean - Head of Travelling to Ben Pauling

    Hannah Dean, nee Worgan, grew up in the Welsh-English border village of Undy, Monmouthshire, alongside ponies and the Pony Club, often...
    5550
    December 2021 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jan 4
    • 12 min

    December 2021 Blog

    December had many very busy moments; some were great and others weren’t so great. The weather or traffic, to name a couple of factors,...
    8170
    An Interview with Top Trainer Lucinda Russell
    Jo O'Neill
    • Dec 28, 2021
    • 5 min

    An Interview with Top Trainer Lucinda Russell

    Lucinda Russell was a pony-mad child, pony-clubbing and riding eventers and showjumpers. She originally grew up in Edinburgh but the...
    2440
    An Interview with Dominic Toole - Stable Manager at Epsom Downs and Sandown
    Jo O'Neill
    • Dec 17, 2021
    • 5 min

    An Interview with Dominic Toole - Stable Manager at Epsom Downs and Sandown

    Dominic Toole, in his capacity of stable manager, is an integral part of every Derby Day at Epsom Downs and all the Flat and Jump...
    1170
    The Racing Life of Ollie McPhail
    Jo O'Neill
    • Dec 9, 2021
    • 6 min

    The Racing Life of Ollie McPhail

    Many racegoers have seen pupils let out of their classrooms for a day at the races, often brightly coloured with the old silks they wear....
    4550
    November 2021 Blog
    Jo O'Neill
    • Dec 2, 2021
    • 7 min

    November 2021 Blog

    `November largely consisted of mucking out and then going racing as I was still the temporary head of travelling. The winners always...
    5101
    An Interview with Trainer Philip Hobbs
    Jo O'Neill
    • Nov 25, 2021
    • 2 min

    An Interview with Trainer Philip Hobbs

    For three decades Philip Hobbs has been a top trainer. Based near Minehead in Somerset, the yard had been associated with many Festival...
    4560
    An Interview with Racing Groom Gemma McQuillan
    Jo O'Neill
    • Nov 18, 2021
    • 5 min

    An Interview with Racing Groom Gemma McQuillan

    Gemma McQuillan loves working with racehorses and wouldn’t be happy doing anything else. She was born in Gloucestershire but grew up in...
    3650
    An Interview with Derek Thompson - Former Stable Manager at Aintree Racecourse
    Jo O'Neill
    • Nov 9, 2021
    • 5 min

    An Interview with Derek Thompson - Former Stable Manager at Aintree Racecourse

    ‘Racing people are wonderful,’ says Derek ‘Dec’ Thompson, the former stable manager at Aintree Racecourse. He has been retired for over...
    3480
    October 2021 Diary
    Jo O'Neill
    • Oct 31, 2021
    • 8 min

    October 2021 Diary

    On 25th September, seven of us sweated our way over, under and through the Inflatable 5K round Cheltenham racecourse. AJ O’Neill, Nick...
    4390
    An Interview with Top Owner Miss Jayne Brace
    Jo O'Neill
    • Oct 25, 2021
    • 10 min

    An Interview with Top Owner Miss Jayne Brace

    There is no lovelier owner then Jayne Brace, who got into racehorse ownership through her family’s involvement in racing over the years....
    7380
    An Interview with Top Owner Mrs Cherry Jones
    Jo O'Neill
    • Oct 15, 2021
    • 3 min

    An Interview with Top Owner Mrs Cherry Jones

    Cherry Jones grew up amongst horseracing, her parents having had studs at Cokethorpe and later Chaddleworth. Cherry has continued to...
    1550
    An Interview with Top Owners Geoff and Donna Keeys
    Jo O'Neill
    • Oct 5, 2021
    • 6 min

    An Interview with Top Owners Geoff and Donna Keeys

    ‘So many of the memories we’ve got and the stories we can tell are due to racing,' says owners Geoff and Donna Keeys. They discovered...
    2140
    September 2021 Diary
    Jo O'Neill
    • Sep 29, 2021
    • 7 min

    September 2021 Diary

    September is a peculiar month, sitting at the backend of summer but often too warm to be classed properly as autumnal. The yard was busy...
    4780
    An Interview with George McGrath - Chief Executive of NARS
    Jo O'Neill
    • Sep 23, 2021
    • 10 min

    An Interview with George McGrath - Chief Executive of NARS

    George McGrath may not have been the most committed jockey, prioritising socialising and partying but was always proactive and forward...
    4120
    An Interview with Johnson White, Assistant Trainer to Philip Hobbs
    Jo O'Neill
    • Sep 15, 2021
    • 3 min

    An Interview with Johnson White, Assistant Trainer to Philip Hobbs

    Racing might be in Johnson White’s blood but he still carved his own way in National Hunt. He was a decent amateur jockey and...
    1,4980
    An Interview with Ex-jockey Liam Cooper
    Jo O'Neill
    • Sep 10, 2021
    • 5 min

    An Interview with Ex-jockey Liam Cooper

    At the beginning, Liam Cooper only had a loose connection to racing through his uncles, John and David Goulding, who were both good...
    4,2990
    An Interview with Monica Wakefield - Sea Pigeon's Groom
    Jo O'Neill
    • Sep 3, 2021
    • 7 min

    An Interview with Monica Wakefield - Sea Pigeon's Groom

    I met Monica Wakefield, nee Jones, when she visited Jackdaws Castle. Years had passed since she worked as a groom but she clearly...
    4890
    August 2021 Diary
    Jo O'Neill
    • Aug 28, 2021
    • 6 min

    August 2021 Diary

    The annual fortnight without any jump racing meant that August had been quiet for runners, but the yard had still been hectic due to many...
    4520
    An Interview with Anthea Leigh - Clerk of the Course
    Jo O'Neill
    • Aug 16, 2021
    • 9 min

    An Interview with Anthea Leigh - Clerk of the Course

    An Interview with Anthea Leigh – Clerk of the Course at Cartmel and Raceday Manager at York Anthea Leigh is the daughter of the late Gold...
    3880
    An Interview with Champion Gentleman Amateur Tommie O'Brien
    Jo O'Neill
    • Aug 10, 2021
    • 7 min

    An Interview with Champion Gentleman Amateur Tommie O'Brien

    Despite the disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, amateur jockey Tommie O’Brien had a wonderful season, ending in winning the...
    4090
    An Interview with ex-jockey Conor Shoemark
    Jo O'Neill
    • Aug 3, 2021
    • 4 min

    An Interview with ex-jockey Conor Shoemark

    It didn’t start with horses and racing for former jump jockey Conor Shoemark. In fact, it was pretty much every sport but riding. ‘I was...
    3630
    July Diary 2021
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jul 27, 2021
    • 8 min

    July Diary 2021

    June ended with a double at Southwell with Knight Destroyer (K-Dog) and The Composer (Comp) both winning over fences. K-Dog is a yard...
    3450
    The Racing Life of Helen Donnelly
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jul 20, 2021
    • 5 min

    The Racing Life of Helen Donnelly

    Helen Donnelly spent over twenty-five years working as a head of travelling for a number of trainers, including Jonjo O’Neill and Ferdy...
    8120
    An Interview with Racecourse Photographer John Grossick
    Jo O'Neill
    • Jul 7, 2021
    • 4 min

    An Interview with Racecourse Photographer John Grossick

    There is a lot more to Grossick Racing Photography than racing photos. However, racing is a specialist part of the business that started...
    2,8000

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