Anyone Fancy a Royal Ascot Thread?

[CaveMum]

Royal Ascot starts on Tuesday, through till Saturday.

Whilst no attendance has been confirmed yet the King is expected to be present on at least one day and other Royals will also be on course.

I get the official Ascot emails at work, which include the carriage list, every day so am happy to put that up here after midday each day if anyone is interested.

Carriage List has arrived!

Lady Bamford (carriage 3) is a racehorse owner, her filly Soul Sister won the Oaks at Epsom earlier this month.

In carriage 4 are racehorse trainers Ralph Beckett and Willie Mullins and their wives.

I haven’t done it for years, but used to take my daughter to the place they change over from their cars to carriages in Windsor Park.

Once they had gone through in carriages, the chauffeured cars used to follow behind - and they all had different glove puppets 😀

One of the lead horses is being a bit of a prat!

Did anyone see the whole of Princess Anne's outfit - dull green I saw. I daresay I could try googling it.

I could only see the top bit, looked better in the prize presentation I thought but not fabulous- tbh she exemplifies the 'this old thing' vibe they're pushing at Ascot this yea

@CaveMum , would you be able to post the carriage list each day?

Oh, not dull green but teal.

Of course. I might be later than midday with the Saturday list as we’re at the school summer fete, but I’ll do my best to get that one up before 2pm!

Apparently it’s by a label called Shibumi which is based in Gloucestershire where she lives. She last wore it at the Platinum Jubilee. So she gets marks for re wearing and low carbon footprint 😆

So what’s the rules with the carriages then?

Obviously the King and Queen will always be in the lead carriage but how are the passengers in the other carriages determined? Are there always 4 carriages?

Yes there are always 4 carriages. The King hosts a lunch at Windsor Castle for about 30-odd people each day and they select people from this in attendance to go in the carriages. I don’t know if there are specific guidelines as to who is chosen, but imagine there is a protocol they follow.

My then boss rode in the 4th carriage one day when Royal Ascot was run at York in 2005 during the rebuilding of the grandstand at Ascot. The Queen was hosting the lunch for racing industry representatives, I remember he was very disappointed in missing out on lunch at Windsor Castle!

Today’s carriage list

Mr William Haggas is a very successful British racehorse trainer, his wife is the daughter of the late Lester Piggott.

Sir Michael Stoutevis also a racehorse trainer, and a particular favourite of the late Queen.

Lord and Lady Lloyd Webber (well mainly Lady) breed and own a high class string of racehorses through their Watership Down Stud.

I always wonder if, after lunch, they go and check their teeth with the dental tape, before they get into the cars that take them to the carriages.

Camilla's main garment looks a bit pinkish from here.

I certainly would @upinaballoon!

The poor horses. How many will suffer this year for your entertainment 😔

I used to at work because you can be sure that if you ate a tasty bread roll with poppy seeds on top at least one was stuck to the gap between teeth 1 and 2.

I wonder if they eat in any old frock and then put the glad rags on after. I'd be sure to drop a smidgen of mayo down my Alexander McQueen. (I should be so lucky!)

Today’s carriage list

Sir Mark Prescott is a racehorse trainer (and a great raconteur!)

HH Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Thani is a Qatari prince who has invested huge amounts in British racing via his Qipco Holdings sponsorship deals and owns a large string of racehorses under his Qatar Racing banner (he’s also a bit of a shit having left his American wife and their young children without a word a few years ago)

In the final carriage are trainer John Gosden and his wife, who will be FUMING at being listed as “Mrs John Gosden” as she is known as “Ms Rachel Hood” everywhere she goes!
Also in the carriage is John Warren, the King’s racing advisor and his wife Lady Carolyn, daughter of the late Earl of Carnarvon/Lord Porchester who was a close friend of the late Queen.

Slightly odd to be so formal Zara is listed as Mrs Husbands name, yet informal enough to list said husband as Mike rather than Michael

I love the carriage lists, thank you @CaveMum!

Lady Sarah is my favourite, stylish royal so I'll tune in at 2pm.

A friends sibling is involved in racing, very successful indeed and had the late Queen for lunch several times. The stables are unbelievable, 5 star luxury for the horses!

A Royal winner at Royal Ascot!

Thanks for the Carriage Lists @CaveMum

Am I right in thinking tomorrow is Ladies' Day?
I have the day off and plan to glue myself to the TV for the afternoon.

So pleased The King has had a winner although I think if the horse as still belonging to Her Majesty the late Queen. I assume she bred the horse and oversaw its development.
Hopefully this will cement his interest in maintaining the Royal Stud.

Today (Thursday) was Ladies Day. There were pictures of the King looking quite emotional when his horse won today ( not a very flattering photo!)

Technically speaking there’s no such thing as “Ladies Day”, today was “Gold Cup Day”, but it has become colloquially known as Ladies Day.

Yes the King, and the Queen, looked very emotional after Desert Hero won. Zara gave a very eloquent interview with ITV in the immediate aftermath which sums it up:

"It's bittersweet. Think how proud our grandmother, the Queen, would have been. To have a winner for Charles and Camilla and keep that dream alive is incredible. It's a new excitement. The horses are the main game here, that's why we get involved and love them and the competition, the adrenaline – it's indescribable."

Desert Hero was one of the last runners under the late Queen’s name, finishing 3rd at Sandown on 20th August 2022. The Queen was so involved in every aspect of her horses, she planned the matings in consultation with her bloodstock advisor, she named them all (and was very good at choosing clever names) and kept in regular contact with all her trainers to hear about their progress. They were her escape and her comfort, so it’s no surprise to see the King so emotional.

Today’s carriage list

The only names to explain are the Farish’s! Now I may have got them the wrong way round as father and son are both called William, but I’m presuming this is Bill Snr as he was formerly the US Ambassador to the UK, but he is also owner of Lanes End Farm in Kentucky. When the late Queen had mares in the US she boarded them at Lanes End and visited on several occasions. Bill Jr now runs the farm so it could also feasibly be him in the carriage!

Dame Judi Dench? Who knew she was a racing fan!