"Putting 110% into something you’re passionate about can make dreams happen..." - retired jockey Barry Geraghty pens new book

Barry Geraghty  - one of the greatest jockeys of all time and who recently retired after a successful 24-year career -  has announced that his memoir True Colours will be published this autumn. 

Written with journalist Niall Kelly, True Colours will be published by Gill Books in Ireland on 23 October, with a simultaneous publication in the UK by Headline.

 Barry said of the memoir: "Over the years I have been asked many times to write a book, but it never felt right.

"Having thankfully come through my career all in one piece, I feel that I have a story worth telling. 

"True Colours is a book about self-belief and how putting 110% into something you’re passionate about can make dreams happen.

"It is about finding the balance between chasing the highs and managing the lows, something we have to manage in all our lives to one extent or another.

"I hope people will enjoy the read and maybe even gain some personal insight from what I have learned about life through my racing career.’

Having ridden nearly 2,000 winners, including five Champion chases, four champion hurdles, two Gold Cups, two Stayers’ Hurdles, an Irish Grand National and, of course, the race that made him famous the world over – the Grand National win on Monty’s Pass in 2003 – Barry Geraghty has rightfully earned his title as one of the greats. 

But Barry is covered in scars. He has broken all his limbs, his shoulders, his ribs and his nose, and he has acquired over 70 stitches to his face.

He faced his toughest test on the eve of the 2019 Aintree Grand National as he headed towards his fortieth birthday when he broke his leg, subsequently spending most of 2019 with it encased in a metal frame.

Forced to take stock, he decided it was better to go out on his own terms and made an astonishing comeback at this year’s Cheltenham, where he rode five winners, becoming the second most successful jockey in Cheltenham’s history and bringing down the curtain on one of the most glittering careers in jumps racing on a high.

True Colours reflects on a life steeped in horse racing, brilliantly capturing the irreplaceable buzz, the adrenaline, and the toll the highs and lows took on Barry’s personal life and family life as he tried to balance living at a steady pace in a world notorious for its high-risk status.

 Written with Niall Kelly, who has previously worked on the critically acclaimed sports memoirs The Choice by Philly McMahon and Fighter by Andy Lee, True Colours was commissioned for Gill Books by Deirdre Nolan.

Deirdre said: "This is a book about resilience: the mental power that enables the great to keep going despite the pain, despite the odds.

"It contains startling revelations and searingly honest insights into the life of a top jockey.

"It will be a must-read for all sporting fans this year."