'She was the most marvellous woman' - astrologer and owner-breeder Mystic Meg dies aged 80

Popular owner-breeder and world-famous astrologer Mystic Meg, best known in racing for her successful 25-year association with trainer Mark Tompkins, died in hospital on Thursday morning at the age of 80.

Mystic Meg, whose real name was Margaret Lake, was a well-known TV celebrity towards the end of the last century when she appeared often on the BBC's National Lottery show.

Lancashire-born Mystic Meg, who also wrote horoscopes for The Sun for 23 years, was originally admitted to hospital last month suffering from flu.

She first entered racing when invited by Mark Tompkins to open the Newmarket Open Day in the mid-1990s and went on to enjoy success on the track spanning four decades. During that time her best horse was the Tompkins-trained Astrocharm, who won the Group 3 Lillie Langtry Stakes at Goodwood in 2004.

Tompkins said: "Meg was the most marvellous woman. I first met her in the 1990s when I was very much involved in the Newmarket Open Day and she had just gone on to the TV as part of the National Lottery coverage.

"I wanted someone famous to open the event and I'd read somewhere that she liked horses, so I wrote to her. I quickly got a reply by return saying that she would be delighted, and so it began.

Mark Tompkins: long association with Mystic Meg

"She asked what she needed to bring and I said just herself, but she brought crystal balls, photographs and never charged a penny. She sat at a table and spoke to everyone and signed autographs all day long. They were queueing 100 yards out of the gate at Flint Cottage [Tompkins' stables] that day, as I remember."

Mystic Meg had her first winner in 1997 after which she branched out into the breeding side and bred Rayvin Black, who won the Grade 2 Kingwell Hurdle at Wincanton in 2016.

Tompkins added: "We had a fantastic relationship with Meg and her first winner was a filly called Optimistic, who won at Yarmouth and then York. It was a great start for her and her best horse turned out to be Astrocharm, one of her many Astros, who won the Group 3 Lillie Langtry Stakes at Goodwood.

"She loved and lived for horseracing. She loved the breeding side of things,  wanting to know the time and date that the foals were born, which tied in with her other passion of astrology and horoscopes."

Often after Mystic Meg had had a winner, her profession led many onlookers to quip that she had known the result before the race was run.

Tompkins confirmed: "Oh yes, she heard all the jokes over the years about having known the result in advance etc, but she just smiled and took it in good sport."

Tompkins retired in 2019 but Mystic Meg went on to have horses with James Eustace, who saddled what turned out to be her last winner, Astroman, at Wolverhampton in 2020.

She later joined forces with Dame Judi Dench in the ownership of the handicapper Amsby, who was in training with Eustace’s son Harry until last year.

Tompkins said: "The horses Meg had left in training are with Mark Walford in Yorkshire. She also has some mares who have recently been switched from our stud in Dullingham [near Newmarket] to Woburn."