Horse Racing Icon And Presenter John McCririck Has Passed Away

Jul 05, 2019 by apost team

He has reached the finish line: The legendary horse racing pundit John McCirick has passed away at the age of 79. His cause of death is unknown, but he had been suffering from health problems in recent months.

In a prophetic interview last year with The Daily Mail, the colorful celebrity confessed that he did not think he would see another season. He was visibly gaunt, owing to a chest infection that doctors could not find the cause for. McCirick had an idea or two of that cause, having to do with being laid off from Channel 4 after 28 years of presenting.

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He blamed ageism for the channel cutting his career short after all that time.

“Racing was my life but now when I go I think: 'What am I doing here?' I feel like a dinosaur. You're a lost soul wandering around an environment you're no longer part of.” He told The Daily Mail in October 2018. “Life is empty. I don't expect to be alive this time next year. It's a question of slipping away.”

McCirick was also known for his time on “Celebrity Big Brother,” and several other British TV shows including “Question Time” and “The Weakest Link.” But aside from being on television, his real love was horse racing. In a statement published in Metro, he began his professional attachment to the past-time at the boys’ school Harrow when he was the school bookie, later on cutting his teeth in and out of legal and illegal bookmaker establishments.

He then went on to Channel 4 in 1984, entertaining audiences with his flamboyant presenting and attire. He was a fan of brightly colored suits and hats, which were eye-catching on Britain’s horse-racing tracks. McCirick is survived by his wife, Jenny and will be missed dearly by her and by fans in horse-racing communities around the world.

Rest in peace to John McCirick. Are you a horse racing fan and have you watched him present? Tell us about it in the comments and tell that horse race fan you know.