Mrs McArdy was a "shapely, attractive"[1] bay mare with a large white star bred by Christopher Beckett, 4th Baron Grimthorpe, at his Westow Hall stud near York.
On her final appearance of the season, she took her winning run to four with a victory in a minor race over six furlongs at Redcar Racecourse in September, beating Sarasingh by three quarters of a length.
She began to show good form in training gallops, however, and was strongly fancied when she ran in the Tote Free Handicap at Newmarket Racecourse in April.
Mrs McArdy established a decisive advantage and was never seriously challenged in the closing stages, winning by two lengths from Freeze The Secret, with Sanedtki narrowly beating Cloonlara for third.
Unusually for a British classic winner, Mrs McArdy was then asked to concede weight to colts and older horses in a handicap race (the Fen Ditton Stakes) over a mile at Newmarket in July.
[1] Mrs McArdy became agitated before the start of the Sussex Stakes at Goodwwod Racecourse and failed to reproduce her best form, finishing sixth behind Artaius.
She took the lead two furlongs from the finish and won by a length and a half from the Molecomb Stakes winner Be Easy, despite being eased down by Eddie Hide in the closing stages.
[1] In December 1977, Mrs McArdy was sent to the Tattersalls horses-in-training sale and was bought for 154,000 guineas by Bertram R. Firestone and exported to race in the United States.