X-Nico

2 unusual facts about Cheltenham Festival


Llŷr Williams

He has also performed in the Mostly Mozart Festival at the Barbican Arts Centre, the Cheltenham Festival, Amersham Festival, and Gregynog Festival and he has given more than fifty concerts as part of the Live Music Now! scheme.

Steff Gaulter

Gaulter joined Sky News as a weather forecaster in November 2002, particularly enjoying external broadcasts from the Cheltenham Festival, the FA Cup Final from Cardiff and from the Glastonbury Festival.


Caroline Bird

She has given poetry readings at The Royal Festival Hall (with Elaine Feinstein), Latitude Festival, the Wellcome Collection (with Don Paterson), St Hilda's College, Oxford (with Wendy Cope), the Wordsworth Trust (with Gillian Allnutt), Cheltenham Festival (with Clare Pollard) and Ledbury Festival, amongst others.

Channel 4 Racing

Major events covered by Channel 4 have included the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket (throughout its history), the St Leger at Doncaster (throughout its history) and the Cheltenham Festival (since 1995; previously it was covered by the BBC).

Huw Watkins

Chamber music has always been central to Watkins’ output: in 2001 his String Quartet No. 2 was premiered at the Cheltenham Festival by the Petersen Quartet, and the Brahms Ensemble Hamburg gave the first performance of his Variations on a Schubert Song at the Gstaad Festival.

National Hunt racing

The capital of National Hunt racing in the UK is Cheltenham Racecourse, in the Cotswolds, which hosts the Cheltenham Festival in the third week of March each year, as well as other important fixtures during the NH calendar.

Other important festivals are the Galway Races - a hugely popular mixed (NH and flat) meeting in Ireland, Punchestown Festival - the Irish equivalent of the Cheltenham Festival, The Tingle Creek at Sandown Park Racecourse, the Scottish Grand National at Ayr Racecourse, King George VI Chase at Kempton Park Racecourse, the Welsh National at Chepstow Racecourse, and the Irish National at Fairyhouse Racecourse.

Neil Channing

He has retained a keen interest in betting, and can often be spotted at big events such as the Grand National and the Cheltenham Festival.

Nick Luck

He has hosted all major events for the channel including the Derby, Grand National and Cheltenham Festival.


see also

Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle

Spa Novices' Hurdle, a Grade 1 race held during the Cheltenham Festival in March.

Neptune Investment Management Novices' Hurdle

This is in honour of Baring Bingham, a developer who purchased Prestbury Park in 1898, and organised the first Cheltenham Festival in 1902.

Tidal Bay

Tidal Bay then pulled off a shock when winning the Grade 2 Cleeve Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival Trials meeting beating ace hurdlers Lough Derg and Katchit as well as the potentially top class chaser Time For Rupert.