The mates from Darlington who clubbed together to buy an unlikely winner is a story fit for Hollywood, and the men all have moving stories to tell in this charming documentary … even if the makers are too heavy-handed
‘Basically we got pissed, got relentless and ended up buying a horse.” It might need a little light translation from the County Durhamese when they pitch it to Hollywood, but that is the essence of the hour-long documentary It’s Showtime! A group of mates from a Darlington council estate – Baz (“He’s got the dopiest facial expressions I’ve ever seen”), Anth, Jeff (“bright as a blackout”), Nick, Ste (Jeff’s nephew and group organiser), Mike and Dog (“Anth’s round the bend, but Dog’s another level”) and Kev (who does not appear in the film) – clubbed together in 2020 and bought a horse they called Showtime Mahomes for £8,000. When they started racing him the next year, he came second in his first two races, won his third and then in 2022 this darkest of dark horses won at York. “The Ascot of the north,” says Baz, dreamily. “It was up there with my children being born.”
The question that drives the film is whether scrappy little Showtime can repeat the feat in 2023. We follow him and the lads round a series of local races building up to the big event. In the meantime, we come to know the men, their backstories and what the syndicate means to them apart from all the opportunities it offers to get pissed and relentless.
