Memories of Fiddling The Facts flood back as Irish Chorus wins at Leicester

Tom Bellamy, who has three good rides coming up for Alan this week-end, is in terrific form and has already booted home six winners this month, the most recent being the Barbury-trained Irish Chorus in the mares handicap chase at Leicester on Wednesday.

That took Tom’s seasonal tally up to 30, and Irish Chorus is a big mare with plenty of scope, and, having turned over odds-on favourite Settle Down Jill on the Oadby course on what was only her second race over fences, Irish Chorus, could add to that success for her Jersey-based owner-breeder, Elizabeth ‘Bunny’ Roberts, who has been such a great supporter of the game for many years.

Tom said:”I should have won over hurdles on Irish Chorus at Doncaster last March, but when I asked her for a big jump at the last, she duly winged the fence but for some reason she could not get the landing gear out.

“Since then it has taken her a while to get her confidence back, but she is not a straight-forward mare and the team at home have done a brilliant job as she can be hot.

“To be fair to Irish Chorus, she has schooled well over fences this year, though she has got her own way of doing things. I needed to help her down the back straight, but when we needed it she came up with two good jumps over the last two fences, so I’m delighted, and Mrs Roberts has put so much into the game.”

Indeed she has, Tom. Mrs Roberts’s colours have regularly been seen in the winner’s enclosure under both codes for going on three decades, arguably the best chaser she has had being Fiddling The Facts.

A great favourite of Mick Fitzgerald, Fiddling The Facts finished third in two Hennessy Gold Cups at Newbury, and she also still looked full of running on the tail of the leaders when she tipped up at Becher’s second time round in Bobbyjo’s Grand National (1999).