Publisher's Synopsis
The last great untold story in British horse racing. Barney Curley - punters' hero, jockeys' friend, bookmakers' nightmare and the Jockey Club's bete noire. For years this Irish phenomenon has refused all media offers, until now. Curley is the bane of the racing establishment, never afraid to confront authority, even at the risk of jeopardising his own career, for the good of the small punter. In his autobiography, he recalls all the famous adventures that have made him part of horseracing folklore: the celebrated 'Yellow Sam' sting of 1975; how he was jailed for running an illegal lottery but released on donating o10,000 to charity; his campaign against the Big Three high street bookmakers; the raffle of his mansion which nearly led to a prison sentence; his disqualification from racing; and how he lost o250,000 on one race in an unforgettable day in 1982. But there is also the human side to his story. Beyond the racing world he talks openly about how he watched his father go broke through gambling, and, in a moving account, recalls the tragedy of the death of his son, Charlie, in 1996. He intends the book to be much more than just an account of a career in horse racing. Barney Curley is an intensely private man and much of his life is shrouded in mystery. Now a wider audience can discover his secrets and an insight into his eventful life with this mass market paperback.
