Adele Mulrennan: 'My heart was pounding and my mouth was dry - I was so nervous'

In this interview first published in August 2022 exclusively for Racing Post Members' Club subscribers, former jockey Adele Mulrennan talks to Matt Rennie about her transition from a career in the saddle to one in front of the camera. This has now been made free to read for users of the Racing Post app as our Sunday Read.

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Even on a day off, there is no time to relax for Adele Mulrennan.

When her presence on ITV Racing is not required during the week – she's just completed Glorious Goodwood and, at the time of my visit, Ascot's Shergar Cup beckons – her focus is on rare family time at the home in Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire, she shares with husband and Group 1-winning jockey Paul. Much to the joy of their two dogs Daisy and Peggy.

"Daisy's chewed up the cushions on the sofa and her bed so much," says Mulrennan, sending the barking pair on their way so we can start our conversation about a life that has led her to a place where she is now an established presence in the sport's terrestrial television coverage thanks to her paddock expertise.

Mulrennan's ability to judge a horse and follow it up with invaluable information for viewers has impressed many. The 38-year-old's pride is clear to see when she speaks about her role, but there is also a sense of mild bemusement too. Never did she think that what she had to offer would gain so many plaudits so quickly.

"Honestly, because it feels so natural to talk about horses, I couldn't believe I got such good feedback, but I really hope people at home learn a lot from it," she says.

"Doing Derby day was huge for me and all the trainers said when I came back home that I did Yorkshire proud. It means so much to me because we don't have that many pundits who come from Yorkshire, which makes me really proud to do it for us too."

Her pride in where she comes from is clear. Growing up on council estates in Bradford and Otley in the working-class heartlands of West Yorkshire, it was never going to be an easy to get a foothold in racing and there was no leg-up as Mulrennan aimed to fulfil her first ambition to be a jockey.

"My first interaction with a pony was one we called a 'lawnmower' on the estate as he'd eat the grass around the gardens. I was infatuated with him," Mulrennan recalls.

"I'd stroke him every day and one day I fancied riding him so I got on top, even though he wasn't broken in. He bucked me off straight away, but I persevered.

"I begged my mum to take me to the riding school nearby, but it was expensive and we weren't well off. I'd walk up and muck out every day in return for riding lessons. The lady who taught me to ride was Josie Elsworth, [former jockey] Dominic Elsworth's mum. I went through the levels so quickly; within weeks I went from the beginners' to the advanced class.

"When I got to Sue and Harvey Smith's a horse ran off with me on my very first day, but I loved every minute. I'd ride through my lunchtime and any spare minute I was doing anything I could to get more experience.

Harvey Smith: 'When Harvey says someone can ride, you know they can'Credit: Alan Crowhurst

"When Harvey says someone can ride, you know they can. Within months I was schooling over fences with jockeys. I was the only girl riding work for them, so I knew I must have been pretty good, but Harvey said I was wasted with them as I was six and a half stone wet through."

It took a journey across the county from the Smiths' school of hard knocks to Richard Fahey's Malton masterclass before she picked up her first ride at Doncaster in March 2003.

Mulrennan's first Flat foray on the Fahey-trained Oldenway resulted in a 33-length defeat at Doncaster in March 2003 – "we missed the break and were wide, the usual, before he only went and won next time" – but in 2008 she enjoyed a major success at the mecca of Yorkshire racing.

Masta Plasta, who became one of her pets during her time with David Nicholls, won the rescheduled Scottish Sprint Cup at York under Mulrennan, who was a 7lb apprentice at the time. It proved to be the pinnacle of her riding career.

"There was a huge crowd that day, I'm talking up to 30,000, maybe even 40,000. It was huge for me. He wasn't the easiest horse and I had to take him out early and ride him out on his own, but Dandy believed in me and thought I could coax him to win," she says.

"Working for him brought me out of my shell. He told me to toughen up and look where I was from – I had to work hard to get what I wanted, especially being the only girl sometimes. He told me not to take any stick off anyone, but I was so late getting into racing because of my background and having no leg up that by then I was wanting to get married and have children."

It was an easy decision to hang up the saddle in 2012 given Mulrennan had her daughter Scarlett by then, and the next step seemed obvious.

"I always wanted to be a trainer," she reveals. "I loved spending time at Dandy's with some of the babies. He'd leave me to it and I'd tell him when they were ready to run. He had a lot of trust in me and I went and did my trainer's modules.

"I did a bit of media training with Jets [Jockeys Employment and Training Scheme] too, purely because I thought it would help me speak to owners and my self-skills."

As Daisy and Peggy defy orders and join in the conversation, it's surprising to hear that the confidence Mulrennan displays in front of the cameras was not already instilled in her. It was only when she took up raceday presenting across some northern tracks that her media talents blossomed.

"At school I was so shy. I wouldn't stand up in front of anyone," she admits. "That's probably why I got on so well with horses because I wasn't outgoing – I'd rather be with them than meeting other people.

"Even when I started doing media training people told me how good I was talking in front of people. I was like, 'Really?' My heart was pounding ten to the dozen and my mouth was dry because I was so nervous.

"One day Jason Fildes, who was the general manager at the time for Haydock, told me they wanted a female presenter for ladies' day. I was still nervous about holding a microphone and speaking in front of everyone at a track, but I eventually said yes. Weeks later Go Racing In Yorkshire offered me an interview for the raceday presenter role, but originally I thought I couldn't do it."

Her talents did not go unnoticed by impressed onlookers. One was Mark Demuth, controller of ITV Sport, who recruited Mulrennan on the eve of the 2019 Ebor meeting.

"It was a tipping talk and I was fretting about what I could tell them that they didn't know already," she says. "I ended up tipping five of the six winners – Paul let me down when second in the last race, otherwise I'd have gone through the whole card!

Paul Mulrennan: could finish only second as wife Adele almost went through the card

"Mark rang me the next day to see if I'd go on The Opening Show and again I tipped a few more winners, so they offered me a full day at Ascot later that year. It was being in the right place at the right time, I guess."

Yet as Mulrennan made herself an ITV regular, she was still facing a familiar battle with her emotions and she says she felt out of her depth when many more viewers came on board during the Covid-19 lockdowns.

"I had really terrible nerves in the first full year," she says. "You're working with such a big, professional team. A lot of people had done Racing TV or Sky Sports, but before ITV I'd done nothing but raceday presenting. I felt I lacked any experience. I didn't want to let any of them down. I didn't want to be that one person that messed up.

"Because there was such a small team when we were in lockdown, I remember standing there thinking, 'This is going out to the whole world live', but once you get going you just settle down, then I'm away. When you have something you want to talk about that you live and love, it makes the job a hundred times easier."

In the back garden, Mulrennan's immaculately turned out horses and ponies graze blissfully in the Yorkshire sun. Her natural gift for paddock punditry has allowed her to make the role her own, thanks to what she puts down to her lifelong equine obsession.

"It doesn't matter whether I'm training a horse to showjump, dressage or race, the one thing I really enjoy is getting into their mind and getting the best out of them," she says. "I really want to know the ins and outs, the way they're moving, if they're behaving well enough, and their shape.

"For people at home, I like to try to give them the idea of what the horse is like as if they were with us. If anyone is having a bet, they want to know as much as they can, so my knowledge hopefully helps them in that way, whether it's positive or negative."

Mulrennan is not afraid to speak out if she feels she's spotted a flaw in a horse. "To be brave enough to be negative about people's horses is another thing," she says. "I try to do it in a nice way, but if someone has had a big bet on a favourite, I want to give them a detailed idea on what they're like in the easiest way possible.

"Royal Ascot in lockdown really helped in that way as I was in the pre-parade ring in a pen because we couldn't wander off. I only got one horse at a time and I'd be able to look at them really deeply. We talked about their physiques and I used the phrase 'short-coupled', but I went back to the producer and told them to let me talk about what it means, why they walk the way they do.

"Ed [Chamberlin, ITV Racing presenter] would tell me to tell the viewers what it means for the non-racing person and the simplest way is by just comparing them to humans. We know what we are like and the racegoers at home can then have something to compare to."

The pride Mulrennan has in her job is flowing again, for which she thanks her father Trevor.

"He's so proud," she says. "He'll go to the bookies in Yeadon and all they'll talk to him about is me being on ITV. He picks up Scarlett every day from school even though he's had five heart attacks in the last six years. I'm really lucky I've got such a caring dad.

"Being a working mum as well makes me feel like I'm doing it for them. It's probably the hardest part of it, especially as Paul is away racing nearly every day. If I didn't have that support, I wouldn't be able to do it, because it's relentless."

Also relentless is the trolling Mulrennan sees on social media, although with experience under her belt she can now shrug it aside more than in the past.

"When you're in the public eye it can be harder to take, especially when it's about your appearance," she says. "It starts getting deeper when it's about looks, size and weight; it really gets to you.

"I remember someone saying something to me on social media before I went on air once, and it really jarred me for the whole day. Paul gets it all the time too; if they can't get to him directly they'll come at me.

"Now, I don't look at it anymore. What's the point in putting yourself down? You can't please everybody, it's the nature of the sport. Those people who do it are definitely not wired up right anyway."

As Mulrennan gets ready to take Scarlett on a trip to Harrogate, we just have time to finish on a brighter note. Paul is set to ride Euchen Glen in the Ebor and she is naturally hoping for a dream result.

"I'm sure they've got numerous clips of me screaming down the camera cheering him on. The only downside is I'll have to be cautious that I don't mention him too much. I don't want to take sides," she jokes.

"I'll be screaming him home again, but Ed's really good at playing it just right and making sure I'm so professional. With the team we have for York, everyone will bring something different to the table."

'The females are holding their own now'

Adele Mulrennan is one of several women excelling on ITV Racing, alongside Leonna Mayor, Francesca Cumani and Jane Mangan. Given what Hollie Doyle and Rachael Blackmore are doing in the saddle as well, Mulrennan feels racing is in a great place to continue to push the crucial message that it is a diverse and inclusive sport.

"Scarlett came to Pontefract with me this month and unsurprisingly, Hollie Doyle is her favourite jockey. When we pop ITV on and see Daddy in a race, she'll always point out Hollie and cheer her on," she says.

Hollie Doyle: a favourite of Scarlett Mulrennan'sCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

"To have people like her and Rachael Blackmore is vital; she goes into school telling everyone about their achievements. I know we try to get away from the whole female/male division, but young girls see them for what they are, especially when it's so hard to get into it.

"I stopped riding to get married and have a family, but I was keen to get back on track. You have to have huge support behind you to do both, but the females in the industry are holding their own now, which is massive."

Read more Sunday Reads:

I used to go home to bed and sleep for an hour after riding out - that's time I should have been using to upskill 

'He has an innate instinct to see things differently' - exploring Willie Mullins, the unorthodox visionary who revolutionised jump racing 

Drugs, debacles and a hell of a lot of winners: the highs and lows of Frankie Dettori 

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