George Duffield: 'I suffered badly when I had to stop - I got very depressed'

Has racing always been your passion?
No. I was always riding ponies as a child but the racing didn't really register because I'd never seen it. When I left school my mum found me a job at a place where they made boots and shoes, but I hated every minute of it. A girl I went to school with went to work with trainer Jimmy Walsh at Nostell Priory and she said I should go and see him. He told me to come over so I jumped on my bike and used to go over there for weekends, and after that I packed in my other job and that's how it all began.

You were born in West Yorkshire, so how did you end up as apprentice to Jack Waugh in Newmarket?
I used to muck out with other lads at Jimmy Walsh's, but he already had plenty of staff and didn't really need anyone else. Jimmy said he knew someone in Newmarket and that he'd give him a call to see if he needed anybody and that was Mr Waugh. He said he'd take me on so my mum got me on a train and that's how I ended up at Heath House. There was a house there that about 15 of us shared and I loved every minute. I had a month's trial and after that I signed on as an apprentice for five years.

What was your big break?
In 1967 I rode ten winners and what put me on the map was a filly trained by Jack Waugh's brother, Tom, called Fearless Lady. I was the only one who could win on her. I used to drop her out last and she'd come flying at the end. It was probably the making of me and she was the one who pushed me forward and it snowballed from there.