Harry Wragg
Encyclopedia
Harry Wragg was a British
jockey
and trainer
.
Wragg became a jockey in 1920. The Champion Jockey
in 1941, he rode 13 winners of British Classic Races, as follows:
His nickname
was "The Head Waiter" a pun on his being the best among his contemporaries at waiting until the very last moment to produce his challenge, overtaking the field in the very last strides to the line.
On his retirement as a jockey in 1947, Wragg became a successful trainer
, saddling 5 Classic Race winners as follows:
In rhyming slang Harry Wragg has been used to mean "fag" (cigarette), but this has fallen into disuse since Wragg's retirement from the public eye and his death. The Kinks
sang a song, "Harry Rag". The Scottish
football
team Partick Thistle
are sometimes referred to as the Harry Wraggs as it rhymes with the official club nickname, the Jags.
His son Geoff Wragg
is also a successful horse race trainer.
Although the rhyming slang "Harry Wragg" (for a cigarette) has fallen out of favor in large parts of the globe, it still has extensive usage amongst the small Protestant community of south County Dublin (Ireland) despite his death in 1985.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
and trainer
Horse trainer
In horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...
.
Wragg became a jockey in 1920. The Champion Jockey
British flat racing Champion Jockey
The Champion Jockey of flat racing in Great Britain is the jockey who has ridden the most winning horses during a season. The list below shows the Champion Jockey and the number of winners for each year since 1840...
in 1941, he rode 13 winners of British Classic Races, as follows:
- 1,000 Guineas - Campanula (1934), Herringbone (1943), Sun Stream (1945)
- 2,000 Guineas - Garden Path (1944)
- DerbyEpsom DerbyThe Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
- FelsteadFelstead (horse)Felstead was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. After failing to show any worthwhile form as a two-year-old he made exceptional improvement as a three-year-old to win the 1928 Epsom Derby at odds of 33/1 in record time. Soon after his win at Epsom, Felstead was injured in training and...
(1928), BlenheimBlenheim IIBlenheim II was a good British-bred Thoroughbred race horse who won the Epsom Derby in 1930. As sire he had a major influence on pedigrees around the world.-Pedigree:...
(1930), Watling Street (1942) - OaksEpsom OaksThe Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in early June....
- Rockfel (1938), Commotion (1941), Sun Stream (1945), Steady Aim (1946) - St. LegerSt. Leger StakesThe St. Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 1 mile, 6 furlongs and 132 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.Established in 1776, the St. Leger...
- Sandwich (1931), Herringbone (1943)
His nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
was "The Head Waiter" a pun on his being the best among his contemporaries at waiting until the very last moment to produce his challenge, overtaking the field in the very last strides to the line.
On his retirement as a jockey in 1947, Wragg became a successful trainer
Horse trainer
In horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...
, saddling 5 Classic Race winners as follows:
- 1,000 Guineas - Abermaid (1962), Full Dress II (1969)
- 2,000 Guineas - Darius (1954)
- DerbyEpsom DerbyThe Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
- PsidiumPsidium (horse)Psidium was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a racing career that lasted from 1960 to 1961 Psidium ran eleven times and won twice. He is best known for his win, as a 66/1 outsider in the 1961 Epsom Derby...
(1961) - St. LegerSt. Leger StakesThe St. Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 1 mile, 6 furlongs and 132 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.Established in 1776, the St. Leger...
- Intermezzo (1969)
In rhyming slang Harry Wragg has been used to mean "fag" (cigarette), but this has fallen into disuse since Wragg's retirement from the public eye and his death. The Kinks
The Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...
sang a song, "Harry Rag". The Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
team Partick Thistle
Partick Thistle F.C.
Partick Thistle Football Club are a professional association football club from Glasgow. Despite their name, the club are based in the Maryhill area of the city, and have not played in Partick since 1908...
are sometimes referred to as the Harry Wraggs as it rhymes with the official club nickname, the Jags.
His son Geoff Wragg
Geoff Wragg
Geoff Wragg was a Thoroughbred horse trainer who trained champion horses such as Teenoso and Jeune. He is the son of former jockey and trainer Harry Wragg, from whom he took over the licence at Abington Place, Newmarket in 1983 upon his father's retirement. Wragg retired in 2008 after 25 years of...
is also a successful horse race trainer.
Although the rhyming slang "Harry Wragg" (for a cigarette) has fallen out of favor in large parts of the globe, it still has extensive usage amongst the small Protestant community of south County Dublin (Ireland) despite his death in 1985.