Royal Ascot reflections: Ed Chamberlin on why Royal Ascot was special

By Ed Chamberlin

Horse Racing

Tue June 24, 2025 · 3w ago

For five days reality was suspended.

The reality of everyday life and horror headlines around the world. The reality of racing politics and the relations between racecourses and the administrator, which are teetering on a knife-edge. All forgotten by many of us for five afternoons when we celebrated everything that’s great about British racing, swapping woes for the wonder of the thoroughbred.

For five days we were no longer the laughing stock but the envy of the racing world with the most colourful, spectacular event in the sporting calendar.

It’s always a thrill and honour to present to the world and easily the most pressurised week of the year. However, it’s also the most satisfactory as these days Ascot and ITV feel well aligned.

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That hasn’t always been the case. When I first started we needed to broaden racing’s audience, making the sport more relevant and relatable, and wanted ITV racing to be for everyone. Royal Ascot back then was still hugely successful but largely exclusive and focussed on the high end. What a contrast all these years later with the Royal meeting welcoming and accessible to all.

Huge crowds all week; a 71,000 sellout on Saturday. The question we should be asking is how Ascot do it - especially in the current economic climate? Early-bird tickets at £25 for the Windsor Enclosure looked particularly good value but they also sell a real sense of occasion. People are curious, they want to take a look and once in, it's everything they were sold and more.

A broad church well catered-for

Here’s my take: ultra competitive racing all week. The best of the best. Their digital marketing and infrastructure is genius. I’m sure it’s expensive but it’s also so clever. The 'Ascot You' campaign was all over London and it was hard to make an online purchase in 2025 without a targeted pop-up asking if you’d considered attending Royal Ascot. That’s the modern way to do it.

Every enclosure is then clearly defined. You know exactly what you’re getting. Wherever you are based across the 179 acres, Royal Ascot is a spectacle. As you’d expect at a concert. From picnics in the Heath and Windsor enclosures to partying in the Village to the Michelin-starred restaurants in the Royal Enclosure. Everyone can enjoy themselves and feel special. Within two and a half furlongs you see a complete cross section of society. It’s not perfect but it does seem easy to move around and get food, drink and have a bet. Everyone has the option to get close to the Royal procession and the magnificent horses.

Huge crowds at Royal Ascot

Similarly, we try and reflect that to make sure there’s something for everyone on ITV. From the fashion and social stable to Ruby’s analysis and RaceIQ. At Ascot and on ITV not everything is going to be for you, and to your liking, but there should be more than enough for everyone to enjoy.

However, both have to tread a delicate path. Both can easily be a victim of their own success, hosting such a broad church of people. It’s impossible to please everyone. The Royal Enclosure might be less exclusive nowadays but still needs to keep the old school coming. I did chuckle reading Arabella Byrne’s magnificently scurrilous piece in the Spectator describing Ascot as “an exercise in manicured social segregation led by the Middleton classes".

It’s required clever modernising without alienating the traditionalists. Likewise, we want to keep our core audience engaged but need to find a way to entertain around a million people. Form gurus to fashion fanatics, young and old. Regular racegoers, to once a year viewers.

Equine brilliance will always shine through

There’s a lot going on at the most historic and important flat meeting of the year, but without doubt the most important thing for both Ascot, ITV and racing in general, remains the horse. The racing has to take centre stage. That is the core product to sell.

I so enjoy hearing Ascot’s new CEO Felicity Barnard talk about all the racecourse’s new initiatives and its connection with the community, but every time she brings it back to the horse. With all Ascot’s success, the horse and the racing remain their primary focus. That’s so healthy.

Likewise for us on ITV it’s the racing - plus the betting, which makes the sport go round - and my word it was spectacular last week. There may not quite have been the stories and fairytales we saw last year, but it was still unpredictable and the love was shared enough to engage a big TV audience. That audience got bigger and bigger as the week went on, which is always a good sign. From the Eustace family’s joy all the way through to France and Japan battling it out in the final day’s crown jewel, it was utterly compelling.

18 jockeys rode at least one winner, there were 21 individual trainers on the scoresheet, 22 owners, two track records broken.

And on the track, my three highlights were

Field Of Gold wins the St James's Palace in brilliant fashion

3. Rebel’s Romance in the Hardwicke. He was Charlie Appleby’s last throw of the dice and this old, globetrotting warrior - who would have enough air miles to take you on a free trip to Australia - produced when it was needed most. A Godolphin winner doesn’t always spark emotion, but everyone wanted to shake Charlie’s hand and Will Buick’s smile, and his genuine love for this horse, are what it is all about.

2. Havana Hurricane winning the Windsor Castle. One of the results that proved the small player can win on the biggest stage. When Eve Johnson-Houghton trains a winner it's impossible not to smile with her. I also enjoyed Ruby's comment about a team sticking together. Charlie Bishop took some stick on ITV for the ride at Epsom. She backed her jockey and he put it right. Full marks to both.

1. Field Of Gold romping home in the St James’s Palace. A galloping grey is always going to be popular on terrestrial television and this guy could build up a huge following with his physical appearance and rapier turn of foot. He's potentially Box Office and what a week the Gosdens had.

What next is key from here

Now comes a week when we racing fans feel bereft and reality returns. As Felicity Barnard said on Saturday, racecourses are better off working as a collective but difficult decisions lie ahead.

When the infighting resumes please let’s not forget that ITV are the sport’s window to the world and Ascot, and those amazing horses, put on a hell of show. It's magic when it's done right as we saw at Ascot. The feelgood factor returned and now it's over to others to try and keep it in place, whatever challenges we face in the weeks ahead.

The action on the track is never the issue, the horses deliver for us on the big days time and time again. Let's hope we all continue to do them justice too.

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