Ella McNeill: The Broadcasting Talent in a Racing Dynasty's Cheltenham Campaign
Max McNeill arrives at the Cheltenham Festival with a dual-threat team featuring both equine and human rising stars. While his family co-owns the highly-touted jumper No Drama This End, he also fathers one of racing television's most promising broadcasters: 28-year-old Ella McNeill.
A Family Affair with Festival Aspirations
The McNeill family, in partnership with Chris and Giles Barber, owns No Drama This End, the standout favourite for the Turners Novices' Hurdle. This promising horse represents their strongest chance yet at securing a long-awaited first Cheltenham Festival victory.
No Drama This End has demonstrated exceptional form, remaining unbeaten in three hurdle starts after finishing ninth in last year's Champion Bumper. The gelding's most impressive performance came in December's Grade 1 Challow Hurdle, which he won convincingly.
"We cannot believe how we have lucked out," Ella McNeill admits. "We've never owned a horse that has achieved what he's achieved in such a short space of time."
From Childhood Enthusiast to Broadcasting Professional
Ella McNeill's racing journey began in childhood when her father would take her and her brother to racecourses. Her earliest vivid memory dates to 2009 when she was ten years old.
"My first proper memory was when Dad owned Walkon, who went off favourite for the Triumph Hurdle," she recalls. "He wrote to my headmistress to ask if I could have a day off school, saying it was an educational visit and I wanted a career in racing."
The McNeill family hired a school bus to transport their party from their Sonning home near Reading to Cheltenham for Gold Cup day. Walkon performed strongly but was narrowly defeated by Zaynar at the finish line.
"Going to Gold Cup day when you are ten, having the day off school, you can't beat it," Ella reflects. "From that moment I knew I wanted to be involved in the sport."
Forging Connections and Securing the Partnership
Ella played a pivotal role in bringing the ownership partnership together through her friendship with international heptathlete Ellen Barber, daughter of co-owner Chris Barber, and Megan Nicholls.
"We always said we needed to get them together in a horse," she explains. "Meg's Dad would train it and our Dads would own it."
When the Barbers invited the McNeills to join the No Drama This End ownership, Max McNeill initially hesitated due to house renovation expenses. Ella convinced him otherwise.
"I said, 'Dad, I never say this to you but this is one we cannot miss'," she reveals. "It just felt so right."
A Broadcasting Career on the Rise
After studying geography at university, Ella McNeill began her racing career working for the late Richard Morcombe, managing Chelsea Thoroughbreds' jumps string. She simultaneously started freelancing for RacedayTV and OLBG.
Her breakthrough came in 2025 when she secured a full-time presenting role with RacingTV. She has since established herself as a regular presenter for Kempton's Wednesday night coverage and worked at prestigious events like the Saudi Cup in February.
"I really didn't think I would get the job, but somehow I did," she says of her RacingTV position. "I hosted my first show in January and it's been going really well."
Ella approaches her career with deliberate ambition: "Every New Year I write goals for myself. I am an ambitious person and never like to rest on my laurels but at the moment I want to nail the RacingTV job, get comfortable with the live environment and improve my skills."
As the Cheltenham Festival approaches, Ella McNeill finds herself in the unique position of being both a television presenter covering the event and a co-owner with a genuine chance of Festival success. Her journey from that ten-year-old skipping school for Gold Cup day to becoming a broadcasting professional while maintaining deep family connections to racing exemplifies the sport's enduring intergenerational appeal.
