Jim Aloysius McGrath is the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

's senior horse racing

Horseracing in the United Kingdom

Horse racing is a popular spectator sport in Great Britain, with hundreds of years of unique heritage. Gambling on horseraces is also considered the cornerstone of the British betting industry....

 commentator. He was previously deputy race commentator, and sometimes a paddock commentator.

Career

McGrath initially commentated in his native Australia but found few opportunities so he moved to Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

 in 1973.

In 1984 he moved to Europe, initially commentating at Phoenix Park

Phoenix Park Racecourse

Phoenix Park Racecourse is a former horse racing venue in Ireland. It was located in the north-west corner of Dublin on the northern edge of Phoenix Park. The course was founded by J. H. H. Peard, and racing began there in 1902....

 in Dublin. In the same year he covered the Ebor meeting at York

York Racecourse

York Racecourse is a horse racing track in the southwest of the city of York in North Yorkshire, England with a spectator capacity of 60,000. The most famous race to be held at York on an annual basis is the Ebor Handicap, which is run during the Ebor Festival meeting in August...

, receiving positive reviews from some national news sources.

McGrath joined the BBC in time for the 1993 racing season. He succeeded Sir Peter O'Sullevan

Peter O'Sullevan

Sir Peter O'Sullevan is a retired horse racing commentator for the BBC from 1947 to 1997, and correspondent for the Press Association, Daily Express and Today.-Early life:...

 as the BBC's senior race commentator in December 1997. Since then he has commentated on all the BBC's major meetings including the Epsom Derby

Epsom Derby

The 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...

 and the Epsom Oaks

Epsom Oaks

The 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....

, Royal Ascot, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe

The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year, usually on the first Sunday in October.Popularly referred to as the...

, the Irish Derby, the Hennessy Gold Cup, Glorious Goodwood, the Welsh National

Welsh National

The Welsh National is a Grade 3 National Hunt chase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Chepstow, Wales, over a distance of about 3 miles and 5½ furlongs , and during its running there are twenty-two fences to be jumped...

, and perhaps the world's most famous steeplechase, the Grand National

Grand National

The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...

. For the Grand National he covers three portions of the 4½-mile race: the start until the first fence, the 13th to 17th fence, and from the 29th fence to the finishing post. McGrath has called home the winner of every National since 1998

1998 Grand National

The 1998 Grand National was the 151st official renewal of the world-famous Grand National steeplechase that took place at Aintree near Liverpool, England, on 4 April 1998....

.

McGrath has also commentated on the Melbourne Cup

Melbourne Cup

The Melbourne Cup is Australia's major Thoroughbred horse race. Marketed as "the race that stops a nation", it is a 3,200 metre race for three-year-olds and over. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world, and one of the richest turf races...

 in Australia.

In 2004 he became a presenter on At The Races

At the Races

At The Races is a British television channel, originally co-founded with Channel 4, but now owned by a partnership between British Sky Broadcasting, Arena Leisure Plc and 30 UK racecourses....

. He has also been a journalist for The Daily Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...

 since the 1990s.

In 2010 McGrath was dropped by the BBC from the Guineas meeting at Newmarket

Newmarket Racecourse

The town of Newmarket, in Suffolk, England, is the headquarters of British horseracing, home to the largest cluster of training yards in the country and many key horse racing organisations. Newmarket Racecourse has two courses - the Rowley Mile Course and the July Course. Both are wide, galloping...

, but returned for later races.