LEO Powell was keeping good company at Royal Ascot last Saturday. Just check out his social media postings.

A guest of Sir Francis Brooke Bt., Ascot’s chairman and Her Majesty’s Representative, Leo proved to be anything but camera-shy when it came to posing with some of the wonderful guests on the day.

Our editor is a long-time fan of Gyles Brandreth, the writer, broadcaster, actor and former MP. The star of many radio and television programmes, Leo is especially fond of Gyles’ appearances on Celebrity Gogglebox, a role he currently shares with Dame Joanna Lumley.

Leo was able to put Gyles right on the rights and wrongs of two-year-old racing, a fact acknowledged by Gyles in a Twitter message to The Irish Field editor. The posting also revealed that Gyles is now a subscriber to this paper!

Comics

One of the shows on which Gyles is a regular is Would I Lie To You?, and he regularly joins one of the show’s anchors, Lee Mack. One of Britain’s most recognisable comics, Lee spent three days with Ginger McCain, during this brief period looking after Red Rum. Lee was enjoying a day’s fun at the races after hosting The Platinum Jubilee Party at the Palace. Sadly, he did not get to meet Queen Elizabeth at the races.

Gold medalist

Jay Blades MBE hosts BBC1’s primetime television show The Repair Shop, one of the most popular offerings for the station. He is also a leading motivator and advocate for disadvantaged people in the community, as is Nicola Adams OBE. The latter is a double Olympic gold medallist, a WBO world champion, and Britain’s most successful boxer of all time. She was named the most influential LGBT person in Britain, and now does a tremendous amount of community and charity work.

Asked to pick one of the A-list celebrities as his favourite, Leo was understandably reticent. “They say you should never meet you heroes, but Gyles Brandreth was a delight. However, all four stars were incredibly friendly, talkative and relaxed, and all clearly enjoyed their racing. Any one of them, or all of them, could easily front a ‘Come Racing’ campaign.

“Racing on Saturday was top-class, meeting so many lovely people was a joy, and my day at Royal Ascot ranks as one of my favourite days ever at the sport.”