The Grand National has only ever left Aintree during World War 1 when it was staged at what is now Gatwick Airport. The 2026 edition of the steeplechasing spectacle takes place this Saturday.
No race captures the imagination of punters quite like the National, which has been a British institution since the mid 1800s. It was first officially held in 1839 at its longtime home, Aintree. There have been some cancellations, notably during World War 2 and in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 1993, the race was also deemed null and void after many runners jumped off and completed it without seeing a false start. However, World War 1 actually saw the race move away from Liverpool and it was interestingly Gatwick racecourse, now the site of the UK’s second-largest airport, where it was held.
Between the wartime years of 1916 and 1918, the West Sussex course became the racing capital of England when the National came to town. This relocation occurred because Aintree was being used by the War Office.
Gatwick’s course first staged a race meeting in 1891. Doug Cox, from Horley Local History Society, told the BBC: “On a race day it would have been quite noisy.
“The horses would have come off the train at Horley and trotted off down the road to what is now the south-east of Gatwick railway station. The racecourse was a large circular track. There was even an 18-hole golf course.”
Known as the War National Steeplechases, three renewals were held at Gatwick. Vermouth won the 1916 race, the 1917 edition saw Ballymacad prevail and the grandfather of the great Lester Piggott, Ernie, rode Poethlyn to glory in 1918.
Poethlyn ended up being victorious when the race returned to Aintree in 1919, making him the only horse to win a National in both Liverpool and Sussex. Gatwick racecourse was granted the privilege of hosting the National during World War 1 but during World War 2, it, much like Aintree all those years prior, was impacted
The RAF requisitioned the entire course during the war and turned it into a base for fighter squadrons and repair depots. Gatwick closed permanently in 1940 and was therefore unable to host any of the National renewals cancelled from 1941 to 1945.
In 1956, the site underwent a massive redevelopment as it slowly became the Gatwick Airport that stands today. Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the modern site in 1958.