Fans' Favourites: Love is in the air for Chris Hughes and Annie Mc

Fans Favourites' is a new feature in the Racing Post Weekender in which we talk to those closest to racing's most popular horses and find out why they pluck on our heartstrings. Out every Wednesday

The sport of horseracing has lent itself to plenty of celebrity owners over the years.

Hot Chocolate singer Errol Brown and top golfer Lee Westwood are just two who have tasted Cheltenham Festival success, TV presenters Carol Vorderman and Richard Hammond are part-owners of novice hurdler Subway Surf, while a number of football personalities have found their way into racehorse ownership, with Sir Alex Ferguson hoping for Cheltenham Gold Cup glory this week with Clan Des Obeaux.

But few have had such an impact in creating a crossover between racing and British pop culture as Chris Hughes.
A regular face on ITV Racing, Hughes rose to stardom on the channel’s dating reality series Love Island, where he finished third in the 2017 series.

Now he boasts more than 500,000 followers on Twitter with a unique mix of racing fans and reality television fans. While those demographics are not typically partnered, Hughes’s popularity has resulted in some overlap, particularly when it comes to his beloved novice chaser Annie Mc, whom he owns as part of the Coral Champions Club through his role as ambassador.

“The amount of tweets I get every day from people asking about Annie Mc is incredible,” he says. “When I post a video, so many people will reply to it asking about her and how she is, and it’s brilliant because everyone’s as excited about her as we are.

“I remember when she won at Newbury last season when she was hurdling and the commentator flagged up that she was popular on social media. Everyone knew about her and it was brilliant to see so many people taking an interest.

“People have followed her journey through social media, which is exciting for everyone in that you don’t have to own a horse or have a direct involvement to enjoy their progression – that’s the beauty of horseracing.”

Chris Hughes with his pride and joy Annie McCredit: Matt Alexander

As Hughes talks about Annie Mc, you can feel his mood change and the passion in his voice, proving just how much he adores her. You only have to look at his Twitter account to see the bond he has with the mare, and it is through the footage he shares online that the six-year-old has found a fan club, as Coral PR director Simon Clare highlights.

“Chris fell in love with Annie Mc in a really natural way, which you can see through the videos and photos he puts on social media,” says Clare. “His love for her is so real and it’s really added to her popularity and appeal to the wider audience.”

Hughes’s involvement in racing is not just a PR stunt or an attempt to stay in the spotlight following his Love Island success.

Having grown up in the Cotswolds, Hughes has been around racing his entire life. He was childhood best friends with ace jockey Sam Twiston-Davies and rode out himself in his schooldays. It delights Hughes that he is able to work in the sport he loves so dearly, and he looks to use his profile and ownership of Annie Mc as a means of getting others into racing.

He says: “I really enjoy promoting the sport and getting youngsters involved. When Annie Mc won at Wetherby in January there were about a dozen young lads there, aged around 12, and they were all cheering for Annie Mc. It was such a nice feeling and great to see because it reminded me of how I used to be when I went racing with Sam Twiston-Davies and his dad to watch one of his horses run.”

That tale highlights the positive impact personalities like Hughes can have on the industry and moulding the next generation of racing fans.

And there would be another huge popularity jump this week if the six-year-old gallops to Cheltenham Festival glory.

Following a hat-trick of victories at Wincanton, Wetherby and Bangor, the Jonjo O’Neill-trained mare will line up alongside the best 2m4f novice chasers on Thursday when she bids to win the Grade 1 Marsh Novices’ Chase.

It will be her first crack at the top level and Hughes can scarcely believe he will be heading to Prestbury Park as an owner.

Annie Mc will run in the Marsh on ThursdayCredit: Matt Alexander

“I get excited just going to places like Bangor and whenever she runs I feel the adrenaline, but this adds that extra emotion,” he says. “This is the pinnacle of our sport and to know she’ll be competing at the top level on the biggest stage, there’s no feeling like it.

“Just to be there at the Cheltenham Festival with the Coral Champions Club, my family, and Jonjo and his wife Jacqui, it’s going to be an unbelievable day and one we’ll all enjoy and remember forever.”

Although Annie Mc has held up her end of the bargain, Hughes still has some work to do himself in order to make that dream a reality, as he explains.

“I’m working for ITV every day of the festival but I’m definitely going to have to ask the question to see if I can get an hour off. I’ll need half an hour before to prepare mentally and half an hour after to recover, and hopefully I can be given the chance to enjoy it properly as it’s such a big moment.”

It will not be the first time an ITV personality has had a vested interest in a race at a big festival.

Oli Bell memorably charged on to the Royal Ascot track in 2017 following the Gold Cup victory of Big Orange, who was trained by the presenter’s uncle Michael Bell.

Known for wearing his heart on his sleeve, Hughes can neither confirm nor deny the possibility that he might do something similar if Annie Mc triumphs at Cheltenham.

“You never know,” he says. “Until that moment occurred for Oli I bet he didn’t even know what he would do. We’ll have to wait and see, but I’ll probably be an emotional wreck if she wins.

“The nervous anxiety on the day will be a horrible feeling but we’ll get over it and enjoy it. At the end of the day she’s in fine form, jumps as well as anything else and has every right to be there and every chance of winning. All we can do is keep our fingers crossed.”

Five lucky Coral Champions Club members given chance of a lifetime

Chris Hughes is the face of the Annie Mc fan club, but he is just one of thousands of people who have a personal attachment to the mare through the Coral Champions Club

Annie Mc is put through her paces before CheltenhamCredit: Matt Alexander

In 2013, Coral set up a syndicate with the aim of rewarding and engaging customers who had always dreamed of owning a racehorse but had never had the opportunity to experience it.

Now boasting a membership of around 50,000, the Coral Champions Club will collectively hold their breath on Thursday when Annie Mc tackles the Marsh Novices’ Chase, and it is a moment PR director Simon Clare is relishing.

“It’s a phenomenal feeling,” says Clare. “When we started the club we wanted Saturday runners. We never dreamed we’d have a Cheltenham Festival Grade 1 runner.

“Taking in such a huge race in the biggest week in the sport with a horse trained by a Gold Cup and Grand National winner, it’s all fallen perfectly and it could be one of the most amazing ends to what has been an incredible story.”

The way in which Annie Mc became part of the Coral Champions Club was no simple purchase. In fact, were it not for Hughes’s success on Love Island, the mare would almost certainly have never even been on their radar, as Clare explains.

“It all started when we spoke to Chris about becoming an ambassador and he was riding in the charity race at York in 2018,” he says. “Chris already had a link with Jonjo O’Neill, so we called him and asked him to train Chris to ride in the race and let us film him training.

“I got to know the O’Neills really well through that and we became good friends. They said they’d enjoyed training Chris and asked if we’d consider having a horse with them for the Champions Club.

“After selling one of our old runners, Innocent Girl, back to her breeder, we had an email from Jonjo saying they had this horse, Annie Mc, and he wanted to train her for us. The timing was absolutely perfect and the whole journey since has been amazing.”

Like most syndicates, the Coral Champions Club gives its members the opportunity to be an owner for the day, an exciting prospect when it comes to Cheltenham. With the Marsh holding a total prize pot of more than £150,000, those selected could also have the chance to fill their pockets.

“We’re giving five people the opportunity to own Annie Mc for that day and to enter the owners’ marquee to stand alongside Chris and Jonjo. On top of that, they will also receive ten per cent of any prize-money she gets, so if she does land the big one they’ll be celebrating much more than just a winner.

“It’s a great way to give racing fans the chance to do something they would otherwise never get the chance to experience.”
Although this will undoubtedly be the biggest day in the Annie Mc saga so far, it will by no means be the end.

She is still just a novice chaser, and that she is contesting such a prestigious race highlights that there could be plenty more big days to come for the daughter of Mahler.

Clare says: “We’re going to learn a huge amount about how good she actually is and we’ve got one eye on next year already, especially with the introduction of a new 2m4f mares’ Grade 1. I don’t think it’s impossible for her to win and if she can manage the first five that would be fantastic.”

Annie Mc already has 50,000 supporters who will be cheering her up the hill at Prestbury Park on Thursday and, given her social media profile, plenty more across Britain and Ireland will be hoping to see the plucky chaser pull off the big one.