Keep it simple but not simplistic: how to attract new fans without dumbing down

When I left the BBC at the end of April people were kind enough to say a few nice things about my work as racing correspondent; some of them may even have been justified.

Of the messages received, I enjoyed two in particular, one from a woman in Glasgow and another from a man living just outside Milton Keynes, both saying that despite having no interest in racing they still enjoyed hearing about it on the radio.

Unsurprisingly, neither had built vast fortunes on the back of my tipping, and nor did they rate as comedy genius the nature of any on-air chat with presenters.