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Winning It Back: The Autobiography of Britain’s Biggest Gambler
£0.80
The imposing presence of Gary Wiltshire has long been one of the familiar and colourful sights on the racecourses and dog tracks of Britain. Biggest of the big gamblers, Gary has been punter, racecourse bookmaker, and in recent years television pundit, heading BBC coverage of the betting ring. But there are two sides to Gary Wiltshire. One shows the genial, wise-cracking personality revelling in every angle of the betting business, the poor boy made good, with racehorses running in his colours and a personalised number-plate on his Mercedes. The other shows his obsessive punting bringing him to what he unflinchingly calls ‘rock bottom’. The story tells how from the age of five he could calculate the return on a bet; how he would serve the Kray twins at his father’s flower stall in Leather Lane; how he famously lost over £1 million on the day of Frankie Dettori’s Magnificent Seven at Ascot and then sold all he had so that he could pay off every penny he owed, and started again. It is a remarkable rollercoaster ride of good and bad fortune, by turns hilarious and heart-rending.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Racing Post Books (5 April 2011) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Hardcover | 224 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1905156820 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1905156825 |
by Tony Jackson
Interesting read
by peter stonehouse
Very intriguing book .Anybody who likes a bet should read it.I backed Dettories last winner that day at16/1 during the first hour of racing I figured it a good each way bet.With it,s high draw and a bit of a front runner Sir Michael,s booking of Frankie helped my decision.How many times has he ridden for Stoutey,not many!At,2/1 I would not have had a penny on and d,not blame Gary for standing and taking all those bets!
by RICHARD VARNEY
Quality book ,took it on holiday with me and as I am a massive racing fan it was right up my street ,the sport needs people like Gary.
by Zac The Cat
This is a very easy read written by Gary as if he was talking face to face with somebody. The grammar is at times somewhat lacking but this does not detract from a good read. The moral of this story is that even at the darkest of times there is light at the end of the tunnel and how the human spirit can rise above a disaster where you lose almost everything. Gary comes across as a bloke I would love to have a couple of pints with unlike one or two other gamblers I could mention!
by Amazon Customer
An enjoyable and easy read from an eminently likeable man, thus the purchase in the first place. I had the pleasure of meeting Gary Wiltshire a few years ago on a couple of occasions (he of course, would not remember) whilst at Towcester races; he really is “that” bloke.
by Kevin Bastable
Really enjoyed this and my only complaint was it wasn’t long enough! It was made really easy to read through Gary’s narrative and it was one of those books that you could probably read in one sitting.
by Marie barton-hanson
I loved this book right from the start, what a life this man has had, and after he lost all that money how many people would have done what he did to pay it back, not many i can assure you
by Stewart. D
It is an easy read and enjoyable , but doesn’t go into enough how he recovered and paid back the 1M gambling losses !