ABSTRACT
The social and cultural meaning of non-work activities is a key element in any understanding of British society between 1800 and 1914. Involvement in or opposition to racing was a major factor in the lives of many people so the meanings given to racing are important. It cannot be dismissed as simply a rare event, a marginal feature, irrelevant to discussion about class formation, the rhetoric of social control or apparent attempts at the imposition of cultural hegemony. It could be found across Britain, in a range of towns, right through the period. The fortunes of horses, jockeys and owners were matters of interest to the press and to much of society. Nor was it an exception, a subculture, exhibiting structural and cultural features out of line with wider society, since support for racing came from across the social and much of the political spectrum. Racing expressed and distilled conflicts and stresses which were often hidden from view.
