Leading West Country bookmaker Ivor Perry dies aged 85

Ivor Perry, the prominent West Country bookmaker and owner, has died at the age of 85.

Perry started in the ring in the 1960s and operated at racecourses and point-to-points in the south west and Midlands before handing over the reins to daughter Wendy in 2001.

She said: "His game was always to take on the short ones, he got a thrill out of it. That led to some costly days - there was a time at Exeter when they all rolled in - but he kept batting away. Even though he was retired, he always kept an interest in racing and bookmaking."

Perry had horses with David Elsworth, Jim Old, Martin Pipe, Colin Tizzard, Rod Millman and Harry Fry and gained 30 winners as an owner. Many of the horses carried his name including prolific pair Ivor's Flutter and Ivor's King.

"Ivor's Flutter was bred on the farm and gave him many memorable days, winning the Queen's Prize at Kempton and finishing fourth in the 1994 Cesarewitch," Wendy Williams added.

"He also finished fourth in the race Frankie Dettori had his seventh winner at Ascot in 1996 and afterwards Frankie sprayed us both with champagne. The bookmakers always used to tell Ivor had his horse beat Frankie's that day, he would never have to buy another drink in his life."

Perry, whose wife of 62 years Muriel died last year, is survived by a big family that also included sons Steven and Richard, who run the dairy farm together, and ten grandchildren.

Funeral arrangements will be made in due course.

Les Hurley: was a familiar figure at racecourses in the MidlandsCredit: Worcester News/Jonathan Barry

Midlands racecourse photographer Les Hurley dies at the age of 70

Racecourse photographer Les Hurley, who worked on the Midlands circuit for nearly 40 years, has died aged 70 following complications after heart surgery.

One of the longest serving members of his profession, Hurley started out in the early 1980s and retired from roles at Worcester, Ludlow, Wolverhampton, Stratford and Warwick between 2016 and 2017 due to ill health. He was also a regular at Cheltenham.

Photographer Colin Turner, who worked on course with Hurley for many years, said: "It's very sad news. Les was extremely well liked and always there to offer a helping hand to anyone. He would travel everywhere on his motorbike and was affectionately known by many as 'Kawasaki Les'."

On his last day working at Wolverhampton at the end of 2016, Hurley said: "I've been working here for more than 30 years and remember the days it was a turf course. I recall seeing that great filly Indian Skimmer win here on the Flat and Night Nurse win over jumps."

Hurley, who was a painter and decorator before moving into photography, is survived by his wife Alison, daughters Caroline, Victoria and Elizabeth and granddaughters Anora and Beatrix. Funeral arrangements are yet to be made.

Conservative government would review Gambling Act for digital age

A Conservative government would review the Gambling Act, with the party's manifesto on Sunday stating the legislation needed updating for the digital age.

The document said there would be a particular focus on credit card misuse and loot boxes – an icon used on video games as a way to purchase additional items.

The manifesto also claimed there would be a rise in animal welfare and workers’ rights standards in a future relationship with EU countries should Brexit go through.

Labour stand by gambling and animal welfare pledges

It read: “We will legislate to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online – protecting children from online abuse and harms, protecting the most vulnerable from accessing harmful content, and ensuring there is no safe space for terrorists to hide online – but at the same time defending freedom of expression and in particular recognising and defending the invaluable role of a free press.

“Also, given how the online world is moving, the Gambling Act is increasingly becoming an analogue law in a digital age. We will review it, with a particular focus on tackling issues around loot boxes and credit card misuse.”

The 59-page manifesto was released 18 days before the general election on December 12.

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