UK bookmaker William Hill will replace long-term UK racing partner Dubai as the betting partner of choice for terrestrial coverage of UK Racing in a new four-year deal worth a reported $10m. The new partnership with ITV begins on New Year’s Day.

Watching horse racing without having a bet is like a one-eared blind man wearing a pair of chocolate sunglasses while riding through the desert on the back of a lame mule.

It’s utterly pointless.

As a former lover of a bet on the gee-gee’s it would bother the holy crap out of me if I couldn’t watch my racing live on the box. I was too tight to pay to watch Racing UK or At The Races, and listening to the action on the radio is like having sex without the orgasm.