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

Joining us for or our opening National Hunt episode of the new season is David Hunter, the Chief Executive Officer and Clerk of the Course at Fakenham racecourse who looks ahead to their new season which begins on Friday 18 October.   The popular North Norfolk course is celebrating its 120th year of racing at Fakenham in 2025 and David reveals some exciting news about their racing calendar for the...

Felix Francis, the master of suspense and intrigue is back on the show to chat about his latest horse racing thriller Syndicate.  The story’s main lead is a high-end syndicate manager Chester Newton, who mirrors the role played by Harry Herbert, the Chairman and Managing Director of Highclere Thoroughbred Racing, who assisted Felix when he first came up with the idea for the book.   Felix shares a...

Joining me on today’s show is Leena Aziz, Asia’s first female cricket commentator, who will be sharing her forthright opinions on the current state of Pakistan cricket.   In this episode, The Trouble with Pakistan Cricket, Leena discusses the upcoming Pakistan versus England Test series, set to begin on the 7th of October.   We’ll also be covering the World Test Championship, the Women’s T20 World...

Roland Butcher, the former England International is back for another of his Test match rounds ups as England missed out on a summer clean sweep in 2024.   Roland reflects on England’s series win against Sri Lanka, looks ahead to the tour of Pakistan, and shares his thoughts on the upcoming Australia versus India clash. Plus, we’ll catch up on the latest news from the Caribbean.   It’s a packed sho...

After reviewing the group stages in Part 1, Part 2 delves into the thrilling final of the inaugural Men’s Over 70s World Cup between England and Australia, held at the iconic Wormsley Cricket Ground. England captain John Evans, along with Nick Andrews (England)  and Murray Harrison (Australia), reflect on the final, share their favourite moments from the tournament, and discuss the potential for f...

You may remember in Episode 280 I previewed the Men’s Over-70s Cricket World Cup with John Evans, the captain of the England. In this two-part episode John is back with us to review this momentous event for senior’s cricket. Part 1 features John alongside six players who represented their countries at the tournament, which took place across the Home Counties from July 28th to August 11th. You will...

Welcome to our final podcast about this year’s Hundred! After some fantastic conversations with players like Grace Ballinger and Katie Levick in our previous episodes, I’m delighted to have Rosa Simkin from Rosa Talks Ball back on the show. In this episode she’ll be reflecting on what many are calling the best-ever women’s competition.   This season, we saw the Brave’s bubble burst, the Fire reall...

Welcome to the final part in our embracing the challenge series with Hermione Drummond Moray. If you have joined me in the previous three episodes you will know that Hermione had been preparing for the Ride of their Lives amateur jockeys race at York racecourse on Saturday 15 June in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. The race day at York is Macmillan’s biggest single fundraising event. In this epis...

In today’s episode I was joined by Shizuka Miyaji, the former Japanese international spin bowler and FairBreak star who has been on a magical cricket tour of the South of England, and I caught up with her just before she headed home in late August.    As well as playing for two clubsides Shizuka got the chance to play for the Barmy Army in a cricket festival at Teddington cricket club organised by...

Welcome back to the second part of our short series on this year’s Hundred competition.   In part one, we heard from Katie Levick of the Birmingham Phoenix. Today, I'm excited to bring you an interview with Northern Superchargers bowler, Grace Ballinger.   Grace, who was a finalist in 2023 with the Headingley-based franchise, shares her insights into their 2024 campaign. We'll discuss what it's li...

Today we begin the first in a short series of episodes looking back at this year’s Hundred.   In this episode, I’m joined by Birmingham Phoenix leg spinner Katie Levick, who will be reflecting on her experience in the tournament and discussing the progress made by the Phoenix. Please subscribe to us on Apple podcasts, Amazon music, Spotify.or on our YouTube channel. Connect with us on X, Facebook...

In the Pavilion In Episode 18 of a series where I pose the question ‘What was it like to…I spoke to Pat Pocock to find out What was it like to play against the 1984 West Indian side? The former England off-spinner Pat Pocock takes us back to the infamous 1984 series against the West Indies, famously dubbed the "Blackwash" series—a series the Caribbean greats won 5-0. Pat shares his experiences, in...

In today’s, show we’re off to the races. Joining me is nineteen-year-old Irish apprentice jockey, Gabriella Hill. Not only is Gabriella carving out her own path in the racing world, but she’s also continuing a remarkable family legacy. She’s the great-granddaughter of Charmian Hill, the legendary owner of the famous Cheltenham Gold Cup and Champion Hurdle winning mare, Dawn Run.   Under the expert...

Welcome to this special episode with Australian trainer Henry Dwyer just a few days ahead of his mare Asfoora’s run in the Nunthorpe Stakes at York.   After winning at Royal Ascot and coming second at Glorious Goodwood can Asfoora enjoy more Group1 glory for Henry and his team at the Ebor meeting.  Henry certainly thinks so and is confident the mare can win the race which was her main target when...

In today’s show, we’re thrilled to have Roberta Moretti Avery, one of the most charismatic figures in cricket, back with us. The former Brazilian captain has been on a whirlwind tour of England, immersing herself in the cricket culture by playing, watching, and discussing the sport she loves.   During her trip, Roberta has been involved in various activities including playing for Ealing Cricket Cl...

Today, we're joined by Roland Butcher, the former England international, to review England's 3-0 Test series victory against the West Indies. We'll explore what went wrong for the tourists and what went right for the home side as Roland provides his expert insight into the action at Lord’s,Trent Bridge, and Edgbaston. Stay tuned as Roland reflects on the England Test match scene and much more incl...

What was it like to…. run at the 1960 Summer Olympics? In Episode 16 of a series where I pose the question ‘What was it like to…. I spoke to Ann Ewer about her running career which culminated at the Rome games in 1960.  You will hear about Ann’s excitement of representing Great Britain at the Olympics, being coached by Harry Wilson, who later went on to guide Steve Ovett to Olympic Gold along with...

After a run of cricket episodes, we are back to racing and Glorious Goodwood. I am delighted to welcome back young Australian trainer Henry Dwyer whose mare Asfoora, the winner of the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot is all set to run in this Friday’s Group 2 King George Qatar Stakes over five furlongs at Goodwood.   Henry gives us an insight into the mare’s chances at Glorious Goodwood plus...

This weekend will see the first ever Men’s over 70s Cricket World Cup tournament with seven countries battling it out over two weeks in the home counties of England.   Joining us today is the England captain John Evans to preview this momentous event for senior cricket.  We have had a World Cup for the over 40s, over 50s and over 60s so it’s now time for the most senior group to stage a global eve...

On today’s show our focus is Women’s’ cricket and the captain of the Blaze, Kirstie Gordon, who has just led the East Midlands based side to victory in this year’s Charlotte Edwards Cup and is shortly due to play for the Trent Rockets in The Hundred.   Scottish born Kirstie talks candidly about her decision to make herself available to play for England, which she did in the 2018 T20 World Cup, aft...

Welcome to the first of our shows on this year’s Hundred which is due to start on Tuesday 23 July.    Joining me to discuss the past, present and future of the hundred is Rosa Simkin, our principal guest, of Rosa Talks Ball, Kirstie Gordon, and Mick Newell both from the Trent Rockets.   Rosa previews the women’s competition giving us her top run scorer, top wicket taker and her trophy winners whil...

Joining us on today’s show is Phil Jaques the former Australian Test opener who between 2003 and 2014 played for four English counties.   Phil recalls his successful days playing for Northants (2003), Worcestershire (2006/07 & 2010) Yorkshire (2004/05/12 &13) and Nottinghamshire (2014).   The leading Aussie left hander tells us his favourite grounds, the best teas and how the English county game c...

Welcome to our round up the Men’s T20 World Cup with the show’s cricketing expert Roland Butcher, the former England international who watched the final live from the Kensington Oval, Barbados.   After fifty-five matches across the Caribbean and the United States, all packed into the month of June the favourites India came out on top after a dramatic 7 run win in the final against South Africa.  ...

The Men’s T20 World Cup may be over, but we have a couple of podcasts coming up in the next few weeks to look back at all the action from the Caribbean and the USA. The first show sees the return of Brian Masaba, the captain of Uganda, the African country who were playing in their first World Cup competition.  Brian reflects on Uganda’s four group matches where they lined up in a tough group which...

Today’s show has a mixture of both cricket and horse racing as I return to the home of racing, to talk local cricket in my case with Newmarket Cricket Club players Ollie Green and their new overseas player from Perth, Australia, 21-year-old Kyle Cosson. The pair bring us on all the news at Newmarket CC both on and off the field.  On the field the club has made a flying start to the season, and in...