A History of the Racing Post

racing post

The Racing Post is a horse racing, greyhound racing and sports betting newspaper. It is printed in tabloid format from Monday to Sunday and as of December 2008, it has an average daily circulation of 60,629 copies. It is the UK and Ireland’s leading daily horse racing newspaper.


History of the Racing Post

The paper was founded on 15th April 1986 by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is the Prime Minister and Vice President of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai. Sheikh Mohammed is a major international figure in the world of thoroughbred horse racing and breeding and he owns numerous studs and stables in the UK. Originally, the newspaper only produced editions on weekdays. However, with the advent of Sunday horse racing in 1995, the Racing Post began to also print an edition on Sunday if there were scheduled race fixtures. The newspaper is now printed every day of the year, with the exception of Christmas day. Historic Newspapers has a large number of Racing Post back issues available, letting you find an original copy of the newspaper from the date of your choice.

The Racing Post was set up as a rival to the Sporting Life newspaper, which had been the UK’s main sporting paper since 1859. Sporting Life was owned by Mirror Group Newspapers and in 1998 they purchased the licence to run the Racing Post from Sheikh Mohammed for one pound. The last edition of Sporting Life was printed on 12th May 1998, as the two newspapers merged together.

On 1st October 2007, the Irish investment group Festina Lente paid £170 million to Trinity Mirror, owners of Mirror Group Newspapers, for the Racing Post licence. Festina Lente are still the current owners the newspaper. Sheikh Mohammed maintains an association with the Racing Post, as he continues to hold the trademark.

The Racing Post focuses solely upon horse racing at the front end of the newspaper. Coverage includes racing headlines, previews and reports, latest news, columns, features, tipping, bloodstock, cards, form and statistics, greyhounds and sport. The Racing Post journalists update their readers on all matters of events related to horse riding, including a trainer retiring, an injury announcement or other news that is relevant to an upcoming big race. The newspaper incorporates previews of the next day’s racing action and there’s a Talk Of The Tracks section discussing every afternoon meeting. In addition to general sport headlines and articles, the newspaper provides various betting odds. Race cards are also a key part of the newspaper, since they provide information about the trainer, jockey, owners, form, age, weight, rating, breeding, saddle cloth number and much more. All the runners are highlighted in full colour to make them easy to identify.

racing post


Other Sports

Racing Post goes beyond simply reporting on horse riding by including a section on other popular sports, letting sports fanatics find more information from one publication. The back pages of the newspaper are reserved for news on the other major sports, such as football, cricket, rugby, tennis, golf, snooker and darts. The Racing Post also produces an annual Bloodstock Review magazine, which is supplied with the newspaper in December and provides the definitive guide to what has happened in the bloodstock world each year. The Racing Post has also developed a mobile app that allows users to place bets through the app and betting partners, and was highly commended for the Grand Prix award at the Newsawards in 2016.

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frequently asked questions

Newspaper Books

What are newspaper books?

Each of our Newspaper Books are created with copies of authentic newspapers from specific dates or categories. Each book allows you to choose from various cover colours and designs, and to make it truly special by personalising it with a name and dedication, printed right in the book.

With Newspaper Date books you choose a specific date, for example a birthdate, and we'll create a book containing the front page for the specified date for every subsequent year since. For example, a date of July 13th, 1978, would contain the front page for July 13th for each year forward.

Our History books offer a glimpse into the past, bringing together headlines and articles relating to some of history's most fascinating or iconic events. Choose from Military History, British Royal History, and World Events; each book revisits key events, all through the eyes of the reporters who were there.

If Sports History is more your interest, you can revisit key matches, events, tournaments and races from decades past. Select your favourite team from Football, Hockey, Rugby, and more, and relive every glorious moment through the magic of print.

And, Pop Culture fans won't be left out - get an all access pass and revisit events in Music, Film, & TV. Relive the history of Classic Rock, Star Wars, Taylor Swift, and more, all through newspaper headlines.

Note that each of our Newspaper Books contain true copies of real newspaper content. We don't edit, change, or censor what was originally included in each paper. This means that each book will reflect the true history as it was printed, good or bad.

Personalising Newspaper Books
How does personalisation work?

As you create your Newspaper book, you'll be prompted to personalise it in a few different ways.

First, you'll be able to choose from a selection of cover colours, as well as a cover design. Simply click the options available, and you'll see the image update to match your selection, helping you to choose your favourite.

In addition to the look of your cover, you're also able to add the recipient's name, which will be printed right on the front cover. You can see how this looks in the example images on our website, it appears right next to the words "Presented To"

And finally, a special dedication is printed right inside the book. You can opt to use or add to our pre-written sentiment, or write your very own from scratch.



Does it have to be personalised?

At this time, there isn't any way to create one of our newspaper books without a First Name. It's a request we've shared with our product team, but at the moment don't know when this option might be available.

Please note that anything that is entered into the recipient's name box will print exactly as it's entered. This means that writing 'no personalisation' for example, will result in your book printing with that showing on the cover.

If you prefer not to use a first name, we suggest using a phrase related to your chosen book. For example for writing "A big fan", or using nickname or relationship, such as "My Partner", or simply "You" or "Me"

Original Newspapers
What are Original Newspapers?

Our Original Newspapers are just that - authentic, original papers that were once hot off the press and sold at actual newsstands in the UK and US. Each paper is stored in our archive of over 3 million newspapers, dating back to the early 1900's and featuring 100s of editions.


What can I expect with my paper?

When you purchase one of our original newspapers, our team of archivists will carefully review your paper page by page. Being careful to examine and press each paper flat, they'll also repair any flaws and reinforce the paper as necessary with a special archival repair tape. This work ensures the paper you receive will be strong enough to enjoy for years to come.

Note that as these are real newspapers and not replicas, you'll be holding a piece of treasured history in your hands, one that others may have enjoyed throughout the decades before you. While our team takes care to ensure that each paper is suitable for gifting, due to the nature of newspapers and time itself, there may be minor flaws or imperfections, or signs of age.


I can't find what I'm looking for, do you have more in stock?

To see what options are available, visit our Original Newspapers Page and enter in your desired date. Upon clicking 'search' you'll see any editions available to order, clicking 'select' will allow you to view the price for the paper you've selected, as well as various gift box options available. Newspapers are priced based on age, rarity, and special historic events, and can vary between editions.

Please note that every newspaper within our archive is catalogued and listed. If no results appear or the edition you were hoping to see is not listed, and the date you've entered is more than 2 weeks ago, we unfortunately do not have any items in stock, and are not likely to receive more at a future time.

Gifting
Can I send a gift directly to the recipient

Yes indeed! Both our Newspaper Books and Our Original Newspapers make incredible gifts for the special people in your life.

While placing your order you'll have the option to add a special gift box, which your item will be carefully placed inside prior to packaging and shipping.


For our Newspaper Books, you can also include a special dedication which will be printed directly in the book you've created - free of charge.


During checkout, you'll be able to enter in the recipient's shipping address, separately from your billing one. And, we never include any pricing or invoices within the parcels themselves, so the recipient won't see those details at all.


Note that at this time we're unable to include any gift notes or separate gift messages within the orders.

Placing an Order

Add content here...What happens when I place an order?

Once your order has been placed, the details are immediately sent to our workshops for processing.

If you've ordered an Original Newspaper, our team of Archivists in our warehouse located in Western Scotland will carefully pick, examine, prepare, and package your order.


If you've ordered a Newspaper Book, details for your customised book will be sent directly to our Printhouse located in the United Kingdom, where an automated printing process will print, trim, bind, and cure you book before it is carefully packaging it for shipping.

Note that as our orders are processed very soon after they're received, we are not able to make any changes or amendments, or cancel any orders.

Returns, Cancellation, and Edit Policies

Due to the automated nature of our order processing, we're unable to make changes or amendments to an order once it's been completed, nor are we able to cancel orders once after they've been placed.

For information about our Returns Policy, please visit this link >> HERE