- More
Cards on the coach and run-ins with the law: Harry Redknapp on a lifetime in punting as he dreams of King George glory
Peter Thomas chats to the football legend, racing fanatic and owner of leading Kempton hope The Jukebox Man
If life genuinely is like a box of chocolates – a matter on which I harbour grave doubts – then a morning with Harry Redknapp is very much like getting first go at all the good ones on Christmas Day, all the chewy caramels and the ones in the shiny purple wrappers, and leaving the orange creams and the mini Twirls for the next mug.
You walk through the grand front door into the smart, shiny house, hoping to squeeze something new from our hero about his hopes for a Friday bonanza with The Jukebox Man, and you come away with a lesson in social history, the script for a hit sitcom and a heartfelt lament for the passing of a golden era of English football.
Where you might have expected the usual sheepish apologies for a life spent setting a bad example for the grandkids, what you're treated to is an unrepentant hymn of praise for the joys of gambling and the continued pleasure of owning enough racehorses that you can't remember quite how many.
Read the full story
Read award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing, with exclusive news, interviews, columns, investigations, stable tours and subscriber-only emails.
Subscribe to unlock
- Racing Post digital newspaper (worth over £100 per month)
- Award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing
- Expert tips from the likes of Tom Segal and Paul Kealy
- Replays and results analysis from all UK and Irish racecourses
- Form study tools including the Pro Card and Horse Tracker
- Extensive archive of statistics covering horses, trainers, jockeys, owners, pedigree and sales data
Already a subscriber?Log in
Published on inInterviews
Last updated
Copy- 'Winning the King George was unbelievable - but my life as a jockey was torture'
- 'You probably only get five proper darts at a big race each year, so you have to deliver - and I think I've got a massive chance'
- ‘I’ve never had to deal with that in my career and I did find it hard - you start asking yourself what you’re doing wrong’
- ‘I’ll be there to see the kids open their presents but then it’s a coffee, bang, out the door’ - life in a racing yard at Christmas
- ‘I miss the craic of going racing but it’s a young person’s game these days - and I don’t know how they survive, to be honest’
- 'Winning the King George was unbelievable - but my life as a jockey was torture'
- 'You probably only get five proper darts at a big race each year, so you have to deliver - and I think I've got a massive chance'
- ‘I’ve never had to deal with that in my career and I did find it hard - you start asking yourself what you’re doing wrong’
- ‘I’ll be there to see the kids open their presents but then it’s a coffee, bang, out the door’ - life in a racing yard at Christmas
- ‘I miss the craic of going racing but it’s a young person’s game these days - and I don’t know how they survive, to be honest’