Asaf Simchoni, Moshe Dayan and Avraham Yaffe in Sharm El Sheikh, 1956. wikicommons/IDF. Some rights reserved.Derby Day 50 years ago saw me in the nearest betting shop to the BBC’s Lime Grove studios. I was actually on stand-by for Panorama, just in case the Israeli authorities allowed any TV crews in to cover the conflict in the Middle East that had broken out the previous Sunday.
The original idea had been that I would accompany President de Gaulle on his proposed visit to Auschwitz, but he had cancelled as soon as the fighting started, leaving me, freelance reporter Andrew Mulligan and a specially hired freelance French cameraman at a loose end. So that Wednesday, bag packed and waiting, I was at liberty to continue my profitable enthusiasm for the latest hot partnership in horseracing.
Trainer Noel Murless had started the season with a new stable jockey to replace the prodigious Lester Piggott. George Moore was a veteran from Australia, and his unfussy efficiency in the saddle quickly earned the loyalty of Murless followers (his namesake, Ryan, currently displays the same style and effectiveness, for the all-conquering Aidan O’Brien).
