Owned by Sir Stanley Clarke, trained by Steve Brookshaw and ridden by Tony Dobbin, Lord Gyllene won the 1997 Grand National by 25 lengths, the widest margin since Red Rum completed his unprecedented hat-trick in 1997. Sadly, though, the so-called ‘Monday National’ will always be best remembered for being postponed for 48 hours after a bomb scare forced the evacuation of Aintree on Saturday, April 5, 1997, the day for which the race was originally scheduled.
At 5pm on Monday, April 7, 36 of the original 40 runners reconvened for the rearranged race, with the Cheltenham Gold Cup fourth, Go Ballistic, sent off favourite at 7/1. Once underway, though, Lord Gyllene took the lead at the second fence and, with the exception of the loose horse that ran across his path approaching the Water Jump towards the end of the first circuit, barely saw another rival.
Jumping well, he held a clear lead turning for home and, although his nearest pursuers, Master Oats and Suny Bay, did their level best to reduce the deficit, Lord Gyllene just drew further and further clear. Suny Bay finished a gallant second, two lengths ahead of 100/1 chance Camelot Knight, who was, in turn, a length-and-three-quarters ahead of Buckboard Bounce in fourth place. Master Oats, anchored by top weight of 11st 10lb, weakened to finish fifth, a similar distance behind. Brookshaw, who was, at the time, in just his second year as a trainer in Uffington, Shropshire, said later, “It was my 15 minutes of fame.The biggest day of my life.”
Lord Gyllene ran twice more, dismally on both occasions, in 1998/99 and, despite being transferred from Brookshaw to Martin Pipe, never ran again and was retired, due to injury, in 2001. He died on December 12, 2016, aged 28. Reflecting on his past glory, Dobbin, who retired from the saddle in 2008, said, “He [Lord Gyllene] took to it like a duck to water and his ears were pricked all the way round. I was just a passenger; he took me around the place. It was the greatest day of my riding career, a very much cherished success for everyone involved and one I will continue to treasure.”