The Sporting Life

very large when ya small...

Good form layout sticks out  in mind,and broadsheet much better for me.

Mark Winstanley
And the white star what  showed the best weighted horse in the race

Green Seal Service. Just think, even back in the day punters still had disputes with bookies!

Man On The Spot write ups for each horse.And Dick Whitford ratings on the inside of front/back(?) page.

it was a paper for punters.
nothing like it around any more.

i always thought of the racing post as massively inferior to the Life in terms of form layouts, colour etc.

I thought once the life disappeared I would never be able to use the RP. But you adapt, of course.

Much better than it's rival, The Sporting Chronicle

the result marker sheet on the inside page,started getting the paper when it was 12p,same price as my supposed school dinner money.

Peerless in its day - and to any of todays publications.

You would not need to look for a short price place lay if man on the spot naps were still going.

Nigel Shields? and Howard Parker ratings page is the best ratings(non speed) I have come across. Still to this day.

I remember that it was so useless at picking winners, it was easier to use a crystal ball instead of following Augurs top tips. Francome won all the races in those days ne always saved the horse by riding up the inside.

THE SPORTING LIFE WAS AN INSTITION MAKE NO MISTAKE U CUDDA AFFORD IT IN THE MORNING YOUD GOT A FEW QUID TO PLAY WITH DDRING THE DAYIF YOU WERE SKINT AT 5-30 U WAS STILL READING IT AT 9 IN THE EVENING .....NONE OF YA ALISTAIR WHATEVER HIS NAME BULL S.....T AND THE REST OF THE SELF CENTERD VANKERS...I REMEMBER BUKING OFF DAY COLLEGE WITH 14 BOB IN OLD DOUGH I GOT THE LIFE AND MADE ME WAY BK TO MY REGULAR HAUNT THAT ALLOWED A 15 IN THERE THIS BEAR IN MIND WAS 43 YEARS AGO FUNNY ENOUGH ITS ME BIRTHDAY TODAY I GOT BK TO OFFICE WITH 10 BOB IT GOT TO 5.00 AND ID GOT IT TO A FIVER .....I HAD IT ALL ON TO WIN ON A HORSE CALLED ....MR.CRINKLES AT 3-1 .....AND IT WON I DREW £18-16-6.....NEVER EVER WILL I FORGET IT ...I WENT DOWN THE YOUTH CENTRE THAT NIGHT WITH ME GANG AND BOUGHT THEM COKES AND  CRISPS THEY THOUGHT I WAS A MILLIONAIRE ...THECAFES NAME .....THE GAY CAFE ...HOW THINGS CHANGE COULDNT CALL IT NOW COULD YA ........IT WAS ABEAUTIFUL READ THE LIFE ....YA A BIT SKINT THEN YA GOT THE CHRONICLE A CRACKING PAPER AS WELL ....DAYS DAYS DAYS WE,LL NEVER EVER FORGET DOGS AT NIGHT ,YA WENT RACING THEN YOU DID HAVE MONEY ...BETTING SHOPS A FEW LAGERS DOGS CHEESE COBS WALKING HOME SKINT ....GETTING A START AGIAN ....ON A TENNER A WEEK WAGES AND HAVING A TON IN YA POCKET YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD CONQUER THE WORLD .....AND WE DID FOR A FEW DAYS ......AND LEAST BUT NOT LAST ...."THE LIFE"....GOD BLESS U ALL

Interesting replies thanks.

Someone sent me a private message saying in the top right hand corner on the front page was a winning post with the price inside and they
remember it being 50p........anyone recall that!?

Another person said Augur was aka Frank Carter?

Man on the Spot seems very popular and accurate with his analysis.

Green Seal Service had many interesting betting tales/disputes.

Many would like it to come back in some format....feeling that the Racing Post has become bland as there is no competition for it so they do what they like.

Please reply with your thoughts-thanks again.

THE LIFE HAD A TIPSTER CALLED .....DICK WHITFORD ...OMN PAGE TWO WAS THE THE  WALL SHEET FOR ALL THEMEEETINGS HIS RATINGS AND LETTERS LIKE A ..P.. WERE AFTER SOME OF THE HORSES ......MAKE NO MISTAKE YOU HAD TIMEFORM THIS GUY WAS AS GOOD IF NOT BETTER HE WAS A CLASS ACT

Would have expected something from onlooker by now.
For me the Life was different class.

MAN ON THE SPOT WAS A LEGEND.....BUT DICK WHITFORD WAS GOD

YEAH REMEMBERTHE WINNING POST AND THE GREEN SEAL SERVICE THAT DEALT WITH PUNTERS QUERIES

i have a copy of the last ever issue

WE HAD A GUY THAT DID OUR BOARD AND SITS ON A 3 FOOT STOOL HE USED TO ROCK THE STOOL TO THE SOUND OF EXTEL ..BRILL

I ENVY YOU JOHN

never liked fallon and the ramsdens after they caused the paper to fold. loved the paper johnny

JOHN AND ME WHAT A COUPLE OFF BEAUTYS THEY WERE FALLON AND HIS PAL

I GET THAT POST NOW ANSD AGAIN AFTER 10 MINUTES IVE DONE

The late Queen Mother's breakfast paper.

AFTER THE CORGIS HAD KRAPPED ON THE CARPET SHED USE THE LIFE TO CLEAN IT UP ......ONLY THE BEST

APPARENTLY TWO OF THE KORGIS WERE NAMED ....."SCOBIE AND LESTER"

SHE REFAINED FROM CALL THE OTHER ONE "WILLIE" JUST IN CASE IT STARTED LAUGHING

Used to love reading wormwood scrubs stories (ringlets) about old bookmakers, mind he'd be pushed to find a story these days.

I have a copy upstairs from the day after Shergar won the derby it was 40p, still got the betting slip upstairs 300/18ew with John Joyce, still pinching the fractions even now.

I also remember the first day my other half met some of my old school pals at the paddy power they reeled out the story of how the teachers could always find me in the library if I wasn't in class, the teachers thought I was studious, they were right but as the lads pointed out I had the life cut up in bits in books and was making a book of my own.

AND ANOTHER THING THAT JOHN STUBBS WAS A LOVELY FELLA TA BOOT

IN OUR SCHOOL LIBRARY IT WAS THE DAILY EXPRESS ........IF IT HAD A ...1 ...NEXT TO IT THE BLACK SPOT AND LESTER ON THATLL DO ME

last ever copy of the life was a £1. After 139 years and 36,910 editions it closed.Last issue was on tuesday may 12 1998. picture on the front of the last copy was jack berrys 1500 winner red charger at redcar  ridden by gary carter who rode  treble.

I will always remember the paper sellers outside the racecourse shouting " Sporting Liiiiiffee . . . . .The Ra   cing    Post ". I also remember the Life giving away a free greyhound supplement one day I attended a Musselburgh meeting . Folk were just dropping that section all over the place . It was a very windy day , and it caused a real mess , luckily it didn't lead to an accident on the track .
I always chose the Sporting Life ahead of the Racing Post . The Morning Advertiser appeared on the local bookies wall back in the 80's , but I didn't see it anywhere else . . . .EVER .

FFS 25 years since it last appeared.

Seems like 5 years.

15 years - shudacuda ...

You are not as old as you think.

Was the pricewise ponce loveboys thing in operation in the life days?

Ive got the 1993 derby day life in front of me and there is no sign of it

Isiris advert saying

We will pay you £5 from our own pockets if the trial selection does not win - and refund your costs. This month includes 5/4 Ist , 50/1 e/w 3rd.
(proofed to sporting life)
We maintain nobody can claim better results or consistency. Our average sp is 9/1.
Can anyone even come close to that?

I have the last copy tucked away as well have a look at it now and again to bring back memories in fact Henry Cecils horse Midnight Line is the headline.

Dick Whitford was a co founder of Timeform with Phil Bull ...He also used to publish his own ratings booklets.

The Sporting Life was a British newspaper published from 1859 until 1998, best known for its coverage of horse racing.[1] Latterly it has continued as a multi-sports website.

Priced at one penny, the Sporting Life initially appeared twice weekly, on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It became a daily newspaper in 1883, and in 1886 acquired its rival, Bell's Life in London and Sporting Chronicle (est. 1822).The paper continued publication until its merger with the Racing Post in May 1998; a proposed relaunch was aborted in 1999.

On 20 December 1996, before the newspaper arm closed, Sporting Life launched an online version of the paper, sportinglife.com. The site was run as a joint venture between Trinity Mirror and The Press Association until PA Sporting Life Ltd was sold to 365 Media Group (then known as ukbetting plc, now a division of British Sky Broadcasting) on 14 October 2001.

The Sporting Life was said to be the late Queen Mother's favourite newspaper. The eccentric racing pundit John McCririck was a journalist on the paper and later wrote a column for the website.

I believe the current "sporting life" website has actually no connection at all with the old paper but simply uses the name.

STEVIE B ,I DIDNT KNOW THAT ABOUT DICK ,LEARN SOMETHING EVEVRYDAY

OUTPOST YOU WOULD THINK THEYD JUST LEAVE IT BE ......YOUD NEVER DREAM OF CALLING YA HORSE ARKLE OR FRANKLE WOULD YA

Marvellous paper for real racing men, not like today's comic book RP.

Anyway, anyone read 'The Story Of Your Life'?

This great book is the brilliant story of The Sporting Life itself. Big book but well worth s read....

Proper paper not like the dross we are subjected to these days.

Outpost     24 Jul 13 09:38 

I believe the current "sporting life" website has actually no connection at all with the old paper but simply uses the name.

johnnywilkinson     24 Jul 13 10:25 

OUTPOST YOU WOULD THINK THEYD JUST LEAVE IT BE ......YOUD NEVER DREAM OF CALLING YA HORSE ARKLE OR FRANKLE WOULD Y
-------------

Correct.

The last CE/General Manager - who oversaw the Life's closure - then moved on to a new company ... and the sportinglife.com website - already in-being for 2 years - rather 'conveniently' somehow managed to go with him.

So, he effectively managed to sh!t on the staff twice.

The knight, reading it now also have a house full of "The Life" just cant throw them away.

Just pulled one out at random,March 9th 1988 35p headline Graham Bradley fined £600 fortaking wrong course on Bobby Burns the best backed horse of the day 5/4 fron 2/1 what a surprise.