Blue Peter (1936–1957) was a British bred

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse whose career was cut short by the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He won The Derby and was later a

Leading broodmare sire in Great Britain & Ireland The list below shows the leading sire of broodmares in Great Britain and Ireland for each year since 1899. This is determined by the amount of prize money won during the year in Great Britain and Ireland by racehorses that were foaled by a daught ...

. Bred and owned by

Lord Rosebery Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, 1st Earl of Midlothian, (7 May 1847 – 21 May 1929) was a British Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from March 1894 to June 1895. Between the death of ...

, his sire was the good racehorse, Fairway and his dam Fancy Free was by Stefan the Great, a son of

The Tetrarch The Tetrarch (1911–1935) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He was undefeated in a racing career of seven starts and was voted the best British-trained two-year-old of the 20th century according to the National Horse ...

. Blue Peter was buried in the Mentmore estate.

Racing record

At age two, Blue Peter raced twice without winning. He was unplaced in one outing and second in the

Middle Park Stakes The Middle Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is ...

behind the top-rated British two-year-old, Foxbrough. In 1939, three-year-old Blue Peter went undefeated in all four of his races. He captured the

Blue Riband Trial Stakes The Blue Riband Trial Stakes is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 17 yards (2,027 metres) at ...

, a prep race for the ensuing Triple Crown series. In May, the colt won the

2,000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year a ...

and then June's Epsom Derby, defeating Heliopolis by four lengths.de Bourg, Ross, “The Australian and New Zealand Thoroughbred”, Nelson, West Melbourne, 1980, While Blue Peter was clearly the best three-year-old in Britain in 1939. The onset of

ended his chance to win the Triple Crown as the

St. Leger Stakes The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a ...

was cancelled. Cancelled as well, was a planned

match race A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head. In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consi ...

against the brilliant French colt Pharis who had won the

Prix du Jockey Club The Prix du Jockey Club, sometimes referred to as the French Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over ...

and France's most important race at the time, the

Grand Prix de Paris The Grand Prix de Paris is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and i ...

Stud record

Blue Peter was retired to stud duty at his owner's Mentmore Stud on the

Mentmore Towers Mentmore Towers, historically known simply as "Mentmore", is a 19th-century English country house built between 1852 and 1854 for the Rothschild family in the village of Mentmore in Buckinghamshire. Sir Joseph Paxton and his son-in-law, George ...

estate in Buckinghamshire. Successful, he was near the top on the British General Sires List three times and in 1954 was

leading broodmare sire in Great Britain & Ireland The list below shows the leading sire of broodmares in Great Britain and Ireland for each year since 1899. This is determined by the amount of prize money won during the year in Great Britain and Ireland by racehorses that were foaled by a daught ...

. His notable offspring included: * Botticelli (ITY) was a winner of the 1954 Italian Derby and 1955 Ascot Gold Cup. * First Consul (1946) - 1950 Ayr Gold Cup winner * Masthead was a stakeswinner that was exported to Australia where he sired 10 stakeswinners for 21 stakeswins. *

Ocean Swell A swell, also sometimes referred to as ground swell, in the context of an ocean, sea or lake, is a series of mechanical waves that propagate along the interface between water and air under the predominating influence of gravity, and thus are ofte ...

(b. h. 1941), winner of the 1944 Epsom Derby,

Jockey Club Cup A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

and 1945 Ascot Gold Cup. * Peter Flower (1946) - multiple stakes race winner * Unknown Quantity (1946) - filly who won the 1949

Yorkshire Oaks The Yorkshire Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 3 ...

Other successful Blue Peter sons that were exported into Australasia include Blueskin II, Blue Coral, Bold Buccaneer, Sabaean, Messmate and Wateringbury. Blue Peter died in 1957 and is buried in the grounds of Mentmore Towers close to a statue of his ancestor

King Tom King Tom was the Temne ruler of the land where the Province of Freedom, Sierra Leone was first located. He was described by John C. Lettsome as "a very fine fellow, so far as dress goes, for he generally has variegated bright colours; his hat ...

. Blue Peter was the horse his owner loved best, shortly after his death Lord Rosebery described him thus: "He was just like a human being although a placid animal. Blue Peter was particular about what he ate. Give him something he didn't like and he would take one look at it and turn away. He was the best horse I ever had and was the best I had ever seen and he had only half a career as a racehorse" Young, Kenneth. Harry, Lord Rosebery. (page 105) Hodder and stoughton. London. .

Pedigree

References

{{Epsom Derby Winners 1936 racehorse births 1957 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom British Champion Thoroughbred broodmare sires Thoroughbred family 20-c Epsom Derby winners 2000 Guineas winners