Sun shines bright as a great city's people hail King Arthur

The sun is said to shine on the righteous. This, however, is no day for righteousness. Virtuosity is a quality to be admired, but it works better when it's raining. Aintree has seldom been brighter, warmer or more wonderful. The gods are smiling on the Grand National.

It has not always seemed like that.

At times the great race has found itself under fierce attack. So too have the people who call it their own. There are some who pompously sneer at those Liverpudlians who flock to one of the city's less affluent suburbs, their mindset fixed on having a thoroughly good time. Thank heavens they do. They are far more than spectators. They are the National's beating heart.