Filling the void: Irish Grand National documentary to air on Saturday night

The racing world may be starved of live action but The Irish Grand National – Chasing A Dream, a documentary which chronicles the history of the Easter Monday showpiece at Fairyhouse, should go some way to filling the void.

Scheduled to be broadcast on TG4 at 7pm on Saturday evening, the documentary tells the story of a race that has been setting pulses racing for 150 years.

The feature length documentary features those who know most about the great race – the Carberry, Dreaper, Moore, Mullins, Taaffe and Walsh families, and is contextualised with relevant transformative events in Irish history.

There are also personal accounts from Ann Ferris, the first female rider to win the race, to Mouse Morris, who recorded an emotional Aintree and Irish Grand National triumph when Rogue Angel followed up on Rule The World’s Liverpool success at Fairyhouse back in 2016.

Willie Mullins lifts the Irish Grand National trophy after Burrows Saint's victory in 2019Credit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

Jenny Pitman, Richard Dunwoody and the late Noel O’Brien also feature in a programme that recounts some memorable triumphs, including the victories of Arkle, Brown Lad and Desert Orchid.

It would not be an Irish Grand National documentary without an underdog story, and the tale of Liberty Counsel who won the race as a 50-1 shot in 2013 for small-time trainer Dot Love and her rider Ben Dalton, captures the emotion of the great race.

The Irish Grand National – Chasing A Dream originally aired on RTE in 2017 and is also available for streaming.

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