Horses and racing were two of Queen Elizabeth II’s greatest passions throughout her life.

She was a skilled rider, a keen breeder, and a successful owner of racehorses, with her most notable triumph being the 2013 Gold Cup with her horse Estimate at Royal Ascot.

At the time of her death, she reportedly won 566 of her 3,441 races as an owner and it is thought she made £8.7million from her hobby since 1988. 

However, as reported in Valentine Low’s new book, Power and the Palace, the Queen avoided one channel’s morning racing program due to her dislike of a very prominent pundit.

When asked if she watched Channel 4’s preview program The Morning Line, the late monarch reportedly said: ‘I really like the Channel 4 coverage in the afternoon, and I always like to watch it when my horses are running, but The Morning Line – I can’t watch it. I can’t stand that man John McCririck.’

Television personality and journalist McCririck joined ITV Sport’s horse racing coverage in 1981 before transitioning to Channel 4 Racing during 1984 and 1985, where he remained until October 2012.

Known for his signature gold jewelry, deerstalker hat, and sideburns, he was recognized for his eccentric appearance and vibrant personality, which led to appearances on TV shows such as Bullseye, You Bet!, Celebrity Big Brother, The Weakest Link, Wife Swap, and Noel’s House Party.

On Big Brother, he famously refused to talk for two days when denied the Diet Coke he craved.

The Queen – pictured in 1972 – reportedly avoided one channel’s morning racing programme because of her dislike for a very well-known pundit

Television personality and journalist John McCririck joined ITV Sport’s horse racing coverage in 1981 before moving to Channel 4 Racing during 1984 and 1985, where he worked until October 2012

Valentine Low wrote in his new book, Power and the Palace, that the Queen avoided Channel 4 ’s preview programme The Morning Line and said: ‘I can’t stand that man John McCririck’

The McCririck persona developed into a caricature of itself, not least on his ill-begotten forays into reality television. His critics cried chauvinism. 

The Queen’s distaste for the presenter was echoed by others and in 2012 he was dropped unceremoniously by Channel 4.

He was devastated. He complained of ‘age discrimination’ and took his old employers to court for £3million. Channel 4 insisted he had been dropped for being ‘offensive’ and ‘disgusting’.

The tribunal agreed, finding against him: ‘All the evidence is that Mr McCririck’s pantomime persona, together with his bigoted and male chauvinist views, were unpalatable to a wider audience.’

When the legendary racing pundit sadly passed away at the age of 79 in 2019, the Daily Mail wrote he died one of racing’s best-known figures, alongside Frankie Dettori, and behind only the Queen. 

As for the Queen, biographer Ben Pimlott quoted a horse-world confidante in his book, The Queen, when he described her passion for the animals and the sport.

‘She is very interested in stable management – and happiest with the minutiae of the feed, the quality of the wood chipping and so forth,’ he wrote.

Top trainer Richard Hannon Sr said Her Majesty’s horse knowledge put many highly credentialed trainers to shame.

John McCririck is pictured on the first day of Royal Ascot on June 17, 2008

Princess Margaret, Princess Elizabeth and Group Captain Peter Townsend in the Royal Box at Ascot in June 1951

The Queen meets former Gold Cup winner Desert Orchid after unveiling a bronze bust of the Queen Mother at Cheltenham Racecourse on March 13, 2003

‘I always had to do my homework when I ran one of Her Majesty’s horses or when she came to visit our stables,’ he said.

‘She knows all the pedigrees of her horses inside out. There’s no small talk when discussing her horses. She knows all the bloodlines going back decades.

‘She also used to say to me after a stable tour, “It’s nice to come to a place that doesn’t smell of fresh paint”.’

It was a view shared by her racing adviser, John Warren.

‘If the Queen wasn’t the Queen, she would have made a wonderful trainer. She has such an affinity with her horses and is so perceptive,’ Warren once said.

A clip showing the Queen at the Epsom Derby appeared in the 1992 BBC documentary Elizabeth R, which was produced to mark the Queen’s Ruby Jubilee.

Dressed in a bright purple ensemble, the Queen began to watch the race on a screen before running through the room with binoculars in hand to watch the three-year-old stallion get over the line from the balcony, which is opposite the finishing post.

She is so excited that she stands in front of the Queen Mother and blocks her view. 

In 1991 the Queen, in her 60s, was joined by the Queen Mother at Epsom for the Derby, taking part in the grand racing tradition of a low-money sweepstakes

A clip from this event appeared in the 1992 BBC documentary Elizabeth R, which was produced to mark the Queen’s Ruby Jubilee and gave viewers a unique, behind-the-scenes perspective on the monarchy

‘That’s my horse, isn’t it? That’s my horse!’, the Queen said while turning to her mother as she looked at the horse, Generous.

‘Oh my god, Mother! We won!’

She was then given her winnings from the sweepstake: ‘What do I get?’ she asked an aide.

‘Well, you get 16, Ma’am,’ he answered. 

‘Sixteen pounds! Oh!’ said the Queen, smiling broadly to the camera. 

It was as if the Queen were a child who had won a prize at the arcade. 

‘How kind of you,’ she exclaimed.

Earlier in the programme, there was another heartwarming scene in which the Monarch tells her mother it is nice to be on course to watch the racing, rather than staring at a television.

Pictured: The Queen is accompanied by her racing manager John Warren at the 2008 Derby Festival at Epsom Racecourse 

The Queen is pictured with trainer Paul Nicholls feeding carrots to a racehorse in 2019

Pictured: The Queen and Prince Philip arrive at Royal Ascot in 2017

‘Do you know I’ve not watched with a pair of binoculars for ages, look at it pouring with tears, I always watch on the television,’ said the Queen.

The British Horseracing Authority paid tribute to the much-loved monarch as it suspended race meetings when news of her death broke.

The BHA also confirmed that British racing would be cancelled again on the day of the Queen’s funeral, September 19, to allow everyone involved in the sport to mourn her passing and offer thanks for her significant contribution to the nation and to horse racing.