Episode 503: Bernadette Cooper

We’ve had several requests for a podcast with former jockey and popular Sky Thoroughbred Central presenter Bernadette Cooper. The enquirers were unaware Bernie had already been one of our podcast guests, as far back as April of 2019.  Another email in the past week has settled the issue. We’re going to pluck the five and a half year old podcast from the archives and give it another run.  One of Bernie’s roles at the time was to interview winning jockeys immediately after major races had been run at the major Sydney carnivals. She conducted those interviews on horseback as Billy Slater did so smoothly at the recent Melbourne Cup carnival. The popular host was disappointed when contractual arrangements between Racing NSW and Channel 7 precluded her from being the first to interview Hugh Bowman after Winx’s swansong victory in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.  She talks of the emotions shown by winning riders after the Gr 1 races- some more expressive than others. Bernie looks back on her final riding stint in Macau where she was involved in the worst fall of her entire career. She talks of a winning treble on her first day back in the saddle, and the shock she received when stewards accused her of not allowing another horse to run on its merits.  The former jockey talks of her return to Australia and a whole new life beginning with a job behind the front desk at the Star Casino. Then came her lucky break in racing media, and she’s never looked back. A few little things have changed since the original podcast. For instance Bernie’s daughter Stella is now 17, still studying ballet but heavily involved in the furthering of her education. It’s always good to pluck a past gem from the archives. Bernadette Cooper is one of the warmest personalities in Australian racing media. She was at her best in this 2019 podcast.