UK Horse Racing Tips

I must admit I had never really thought about public relations with regard to bookmakers but it makes sense to imagine they are an integral part of business. In fact, I doubt I would have considered the subject at all if it hadn’t been for reading the late Ron Pollard’s biography Odds & Sods: My Life In The Betting Business, published in 1991 by Hodder & Staughton.

I’m over halfway through this book and it’s a terrific read. For those who are interested in hearing how Ladbrokes went from a minnow of a company to the giant it is today then it is worthy of your time. You won’t be disappointed. I found this copy on Amazon and it cost the princely sum of £3.34 including postage and packing. Originally priced at £14.99. The dust cover is a work of art and the 195 pages insightful and revealing from sports men and women, celebrities, professional gamblers and even royalty play their part in this world of betting and promotion.

I purchased this hardback from Goldstone Books.

There’s little doubt Ron Pollard was a man of the people. But not only your everyday punter but within the media a man who had friends in very high places. In fact, he was someone who had connections with most of Ministers of Parliament and on first name terms with Prime Ministers of the time. I’m pretty sure I can remember him back in the day. Ron Pollard was frequently quoted in TV, newspapers and radio about anything and everything when it came to betting odds.

It’s an interesting read because back in the early years of gambling 80% of betting surrounded horses racing, greyhounds and golf.

What Ron Pollard understood better than anyone else was that punters were keen to bet on ‘anything and everything’ and given the opportunity they did.

The staple of sporting action was limited until Pollard decided it was time to detail his thoughts and odds about the General Election after the Profumo Affair scandal which rocked Government at the time. Pollard realised that offering betting odds on all manner of news and media was not only a way to make money but gain global recognition for Ladbrokes.

His instinct for PR was an asset to Ladbrokes and Pollard was very much the man to go to for betting odds and quotes whether it was a price for Miss Uganda to win Miss World, the chances of a White Christmas or one of the Cabinet was actually an alien from outer space.

The book is very revealing about the bookmaking business of its time and how Ladbrokes went close to bankruptcy, how they saved the Grand National and sponsored many and varied sports bringing them to the prominence they hold today. He also was quite frank about how those early days of bookmaking (working for William Hill) sailed close to the wind.

Sadly Ron Pollard passed away in 2015 at he age of 89.

A truly fascinating read about a man who was trusted by so many and just respected by all he met.

If you want to know the truth about those early bookmaker days of William Hill and Ladbrokes you won’t find a better book.

Fascinating.

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