Sir Peter O'Sullevan (3 March 1918 – 29 July 2015) was an Irish-British

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

commentator for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, and a correspondent for the

Press Association PA Media (formerly the Press Association) is a multimedia news agency A news agency is an organization that gathers news reports and sells them to subscribing news organizations, such as newspapers, magazines and All-news radio, radio and ...

, the ''

Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...

'', and ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

''. He was the BBC's leading horse racing commentator from 1947 to 1997, during which time he described some of the greatest moments in the history of the

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it ...

Early life

The son of Colonel John Joseph O'Sullevan ,

resident magistrate A resident magistrate is a title for magistrates used in certain parts of the world, that were, or are, governed by the British. Sometimes abbreviated as RM, it refers to suitably qualified personnel—notably well versed in the law—brought int ...

Killarney Killarney ( ; , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Killar ...

, and Vera (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Henry), Peter O'Sullevan was born in

Newcastle, County Down Newcastle is a small seaside resort town in County Down, Northern Ireland, which had a population of 8,298 at the United Kingdom Census 2021, 2021 Census. It lies by the Irish Sea at the foot of Slieve Donard, the highest of the Mourne Mountain ...

before returning as an infant to his parents' home at Kenmare, County Kerry; he was brought up in

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, England. He was educated at Hawtreys, Charterhouse, and later at

Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil, known informally as Beau Soleil, is a private boarding school in Switzerland. Founded in 1910 by Madame Bluette Ferrier, it is located above sea level on the Swiss Alps of Villars-sur-Ollon. The college p ...

in Switzerland.

Career

O'Sullevan was involved, in the late 1940s, in some of the earliest television commentaries on any sport, and made many radio commentaries in his earlier years (including the

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it ...

before it was televised for the first time in 1960). On television, he commentated on many of the major events of the racing year, including the Cheltenham Festival until 1994, The Derby until 1979, and the

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it ...

Royal Ascot Ascot Racecourse is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, about 25 miles west of London. Ascot is used for thoroughbred horse racing, and it hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 races and three Gra ...

and Glorious Goodwood until he retired in 1997. During his career, he commentated on around 30 runnings of the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe () is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris over a distance ...

in Paris and racing from the United States and Ireland as well as trotting from Rome during the 1960s. During his 50 years of commentating on the Grand National, O'Sullevan commentated on numerous historic victories. These included Bob Champion's run on Aldaniti in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

after recovering from cancer, 100/1 outsider Foinavon's win in

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 6 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and Army of ...

, and the three-times winner Red Rum in

1973 Events January * January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

and

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

. He also commentated on the 1993 Grand National, which was declared void after 30 of the 39 runners failed to realise there had been a false start, and seven went on to complete the course. As the runners approached the second-last fence in the so-called "race that never was", O'Sullevan declared it "the greatest disaster in the history of the Grand National." O'Sullevan became known as the "Voice of Racing". In a television interview before his 50th and last Grand National in

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, he revealed that his commentary binoculars came from a German submarine. He was knighted the same year – the only sports broadcaster at that time to have been bestowed that honour. O'Sullevan was also a racehorse owner, including of Be Friendly, who won the

King's Stand Stakes The King Charles III Stakes (formerly the King's Stand Stakes) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 5 fu ...

at Ascot, and Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp. He was twice successful in the Haydock Sprint Cup (then Vernons Sprint) in 1966 and 1967. Another horse he owned was Attivo, whose victory in the 1974 Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival was described by O'Sullevan as the most difficult race to call. After passing the line, O'Sullevan uttered: "And it's first Attivo, owned by, uh, Peter O'Sullevan... trained by Cyril Mitchell and ridden by Robert Hughes." Attivo also won the Chester Cup and the

Northumberland Plate The Northumberland Plate is a Flat racing, flat Handicap (horse racing), handicap Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Newcastle Racecour ...

during the 1970s. O'Sullevan's final race commentary came at Newbury for the 1997 Hennessy Gold Cup, and he visited the winners' enclosure as a winning owner in the race which followed courtesy of Sounds Fyne's victory in the Fulke Walwyn Chase. He was succeeded as the BBC's lead commentator by Jim McGrath. After his retirement, O'Sullevan was actively involved in charity work fundraising for causes which revolve around the protection of horses and farm animals, including the International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH), the Thoroughbred Rehabilitation Centre and Compassion in World Farming. The National Hunt Challenge Chase Cup (run at the Cheltenham Festival) was named after him in 2008 to celebrate his 90th birthday. In 2010,

Aintree Racecourse Aintree Racecourse is a horse racing, racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England, near to Liverpool. The racecourse is the venue for the Grand National steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase, which takes place annually in April over three da ...

named O'Sullevan as one of the eight inaugural "Grand National Legends". His name is inscribed on a commemorative plaque at the course, alongside the likes of Ginger McCain and Captain Martin Becher.

Personal life

O'Sullevan met his wife Patricia, daughter of Frank Duckworth of

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, Canada, at a ball in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

in 1947. She died of

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

in 2010. He died of cancer at his home in London on 29 July 2015 at the age of 97.

References

External links

*
2002 BBC Sports article on Royal Ascot

2005 interview in The Independent (London)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Osullevan, Peter 1918 births 2015 deaths 20th-century Anglo-Irish people People educated at Charterhouse School People from Newcastle, County Down Television personalities from London British racehorse owners and breeders BBC sports presenters and reporters Deaths from cancer in England Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Lester Award winners Knights Bachelor Sportspeople awarded knighthoods People educated at Hawtreys British horse racing commentators Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil alumni People from Kenmare Equestrians from County Down Equestrians from County Kerry