'It was like a war zone' - the inside story of the Aintree protest and how it was foiled

Grand National day 2023. This will be one of the most testing days in the career of Dickon White, regional director for the Jockey Club in the north-west. A group of animal rights activists has promised to prevent the race from taking place, their plans written up at length in a national newspaper a fortnight earlier.

Dickon White: It wasn't a complete surprise. There had been a few things bubbling in the background, including a potential scare at Cheltenham, and intelligence was filtering through that something was expected at Aintree. After the story, we had almost daily conversations with the police and our security providers. We identified a number of areas that could be seen as weak points.

Ed Chamberlin, ITV racing presenter: I have nothing against a peaceful protest. I was pretty relaxed about that. But always in my mind, I was prepared for something. I spent a lot of the evening before thinking about what I'd say in various different situations.