LIVE: Racing Epsom Investec Derby Festival

1.30pm Virgin Media One

In early June, 1944, clouds hung over London. In the wake of the Normandy Landings, you see, a horse called Ocean Swell had just won England’s premier at race − the Epsom Derby. Operation Overlord was in full swing, as reports of heavy Allied casualties lled the airwaves and silenced conversations across the UK and Ireland.

Nonetheless, millions of people heard that big race broadcast on radio, when the victory of Ocean Swell must have set o alarm bells among the superstitious... Britannia held its breath, however, for those were the days of the war-time derbies which had been switched from the Surrey Downs – too close to the Channel and occupied France – to the relative safety of Sussex and its sprawling Newmarket heaths. Here, horseracing fans gathered in throngs for their big day out; Londoners too, in tens of thousands, enjoying the luxury of being away from their besieged city and Hitler’s bombs and rockets.

75 years on from D-Day and a crowd of 140,000 will be heaving like an ocean swell on Epsom Downs again. It’s the 240th renewal of the world’s most famous classic which gets underway at 4.00pm this afternoon. To the victor, the spoils of a cool million is but a fraction of what’s in store, once their Derby winner is syndicated to more pleasurable duties at stud. The sport of kings, indeed! Aiden O’Brien must have been chomping at the bit on hearing that Telecaster – England’s standard-bearer – was to sidestep the engagement of a lifetime. What a setback, too, for yours truly... back to a drawing board devoid of inspiration other than which of that Ballydoyle bunch will bring a 7th blue riband home to The Rock of Cashel! Time was when his late and unrelated predecessor, Vincent, would dispatch one lone ranger – displaying a proven track record – to go to war with on D-Day. But that was then. Today we have a posse again, whose leading chargers are as follows: Broome.

Anthony Van Dyck: (no relation to the Liverpool star in action tonight!)

Sir Dragonet: (possible late supplementary at £85,000 for The Third Musketeer?) Broome is an improving colt who’ll probably start an easy-to-back favourite.

Van Dyck, however, paints a di erent picture, having won his Derby trial at Lingfield, as Sir Dragonet did at Chester – two racetracks particularly relevant to Epsom in terms of the undulations, cambers and turns so unique to that course.

“Fourth in the Guineas, rst in the Derby”, goes the old saying. Hence, 14/1 Irish outsider, Madhmoon, is chosen along with Bangkok (8/1) for England in its hour of need. The latter’s form is closely linked with Telecaster which, if upheld, is sure to trigger a surge of post D-Day conjecture!

(NAP) Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Lah Ti Dar: Coronation Cup (3.15)