Jim Aloysius McGrath (born 13 June 1952[1] in Charlton, Victoria, Australia)[2] was the BBC's senior horse racing commentator from 1997 to 2012, when the corporation lost the television rights to all horse racing in Great Britain to Channel 4.
McGrath initially commentated in his native Australia but found few opportunities so he moved to Hong Kong in 1973.
In the same year he covered the Ebor meeting at York, receiving positive reviews from national news sources.
He then commentated on all of the BBC's major meetings including the Derby and The Oaks, Royal Ascot, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, the Irish Derby, the Hennessy Gold Cup, Glorious Goodwood, the Welsh National, and the world's most famous steeplechase, the Grand National.
[5][2] In 2013 the rights to televise British horse racing went exclusively to Channel 4 and McGrath decided not to make the move.