Tributes have been paid to the late Valentine Lamb, former Irish Times journalist and editor of The Irish Field for 33 years, who has died at the age of 76.
Mr Lamb, or “Val” as he was known to many within the horse racing industry, passed away at St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin on Thursday, after a long illness.
Originally from Salisbury, England, he had a strong association with Ireland through his maternal grandfather, Lord Longford of Pakenham Hall in Co Meath.
He began his journalistic career with the Financial Times in London in 1961, before joining the staff of The Irish Times in 1965, where he worked on the finance desk.
In 1970, he was appointed editor of The Irish Field, a position he retained until his retirement in 2003.
His friend Cliff Noone of The Turf Club said that Mr Lamb's greatest achievement was probably the happy team he built around him at The Irish Field.
Mr Noone said it was a pleasure to see Mr Lamb remain a familiar face at race meetings long after his retirement from the Field. He recalled that Mr Lamb had been undergoing kidney dialysis, but had still managed to attend the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in Paris last October.
He was married twice, first to Anne, with whom he had three daughters, Celia, Stephanie and Fiona, and is survived by his second wife Marie. Cremation will take place at 2pm in Mount Jerome Victorian Chapel on Monday.
His family has asked that donations, if desired, be made to the Irish Injured Jockey’s Fund.
