Epsom Downs

A brief history of the Derby

The Epsom Derby is run on Saturday. I first attended thirty years ago - the winner of the 1995 race, Lammtarra, is pictured above, in the moment of his forever-three-years-old victory - and in that very moment a love affair began: with him, and with the racehorse. At its heart is the tugging duality within racing, between the accreted weight of the thor…