HBA Media’s Golden Hour production went out to rights holders globally

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This year’s Royal Ascot (20 – 24 June 2023) was the last of Frankie Dettori’s career, and this caught the attention with broadcasters picking up the rights around the world. 

The Royal Meeting was five days with the highlight being the prestigious Gold Cup, in which Dettori rode Courage Mon Ami to victory, which coincidentally was the focus of HBA Media’s bespoke production titled – The Golden Hour.

Under a four-year media rights agreement, HBA Media, the global horse racing distributor and co-production powerhouse, was appointed by Ascot Racecourse to represent its brand to a global audience watching through 26 international broadcasters transmitting Royal Ascot to 176 territories. 

It was co-presented by British presenter Tom Stanley and US talent Michelle Yu, who were joined by comedian and racing newbie Kojo Anim in a more active roving reporter role.

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With IMG’s Neil Green in the director’s hot seat, day three - better known as Gold Cup Day - did not disappoint, with several significant moments taking place across the day and encapsulated into The Golden Hour. Aside from the live racing action, which saw Desert Hero’s win in the King George V Stakes giving Their Majesties King Charles II and Queen Camilla their first-ever win at Royal Ascot and the first win for the Royal Family since the death of Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the day’s main event then followed – The Gold Cup - with Dettori providing racegoers with a spectacular flying dismount.

Beforehand, Golden Hour viewers had enjoyed a four-minute sequence from Ascot’s commissioned Frankie Dettori: A Royal Ascot Love Affair documentary, which formed an integral part of the show. This was complemented with a significant volume of ‘live hits’ focusing on the unique Royal Ascot atmosphere, fashion, food, the Royal Enclosure, the Parade Ring and the Queen Anne enclosure. A 2023 development was the merger of Ascot brand partners to the screen. Partners were identified and subsequently featured prominently in the show, such as LK Bennett, Oliver Brown, Moet & Chandon, Raymond Blanc and Howden. Girraphic were utilised once again for an approved opener, star-system graphics and a rendered Ascot map which worked very effectively for a casual global audience.

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Furthermore, HBA and Ascot undertook enhancing ITV Racing’s World Feed for the five-day Royal Meeting. With an international audience formerly unsatisfied with 10-minute wide screen shots to allow for ad breaks and unlicensed material, Ascot commissioned a ‘World Feed Add On’ to complement and guarantee continuous on-brand content. Presented by Stanley and Aly Vance, an array of strategic links, interviews and features were co-ordinated within the world feed running order. This enhanced production included the collation of extensive VT assets from Ascot’s Lookbook and Millinery Collective, Frankie Dettori: A Royal Ascot Love Affair snippets and promotional content, through to generic on-event food, fashion and lifestyle features.

The World Feed Add On was co-produced by HBA and Globecast with Charles Balchin appointed as director for the project. Bespoke graphics were created by Jeremy Tidy at Happy Graphics, and these included new and approved idents, racecards, sting and bumpers.