Racing TV presenter

Former jockey Leonna Mayor on a love of horses, the highs and lows of race-riding, and how her former career has worked to inform her new one

- Kate Johnson

I always loved horses.

Mum paid for lessons when I was a child and at 14 I shared a pony; I did all the jobs and they let me ride him. A chance meeting with a local trainer led to me riding out for him. Walking into his yard and seeing head after head of shiny horses, I wasn’t interested in anything else, I only cared about horses. I don’t know what I’d have done otherwise.

I was there all the time, until I moved on to a bigger yard and then Newmarket. The trainer’s wife there was a mentor to me, and he was a major influence but he was so difficult to work for! I wanted to leave, he was hard on me if a horse wouldn’t go on the gallops, but that makes you tough and nobody has that any more. You need that tough love to set you up for life.

Kelly Harrison, a fellow jockey, talked me into giving presenting a try.

We were at Wolverhampton one night, both waiting to ride the last race at 9pm, and she told me about her being on William Hill TV. I did a few days and I hated it. I cried one day and it was a pre-record! After a few months I said, "Thanks but not for me", but they said, "We're not letting you go, you're great".

I was getting fed up with racing.