The Melbourne Cup is an annual Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia, at the Flemington Racecourse. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and older, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club that forms part of the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival. It is the richest two-mile handicap in the world and one of the richest turf races. The event starts at 3:00 pm on the first Tuesday of November and is known locally as "the race that stops the nation".
A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual who rode horses in racing. They must be light, typically around a weight of 100–120 lb. (45–55 kg), and physically fit. They are typically self-employed, and are paid a small fee from the horse trainer, whose colors they wear while competing in a race. They also receive a percentage of the horse's winnings. The job has a very high risk of debilitating or life-threatening injuries, not only from racing accidents but also, because of strict weight restrictions, from eating disorders.
Rachel Anne Griffiths is an Australian actress. Raised primarily in Melbourne, she began her acting career appearing on the Australian series Secrets before being cast in a supporting role in the comedy Muriel's Wedding (1994), which earned her an AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. In 1997, she was the lead in Nadia Tass's drama Amy. She had a role opposite Julia Roberts in the American romantic comedy My Best Friend's Wedding (1997), followed by her portrayal of Hilary du Pré in Hilary and Jackie (1998), for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Michael Molloy is an Australian comedian, writer, producer, actor and television and radio presenter who has been active in radio, television, stand-up and film. He currently hosts The Front Bar on the Seven Network.
Teresa Mary Palmer is an Australian actress. A prominent scream queen, she is known for her roles in horror films, as well as projects of other genres in both Australia and the United States.
Michelle Keegan is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Tina McIntyre in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street (2008–2014) and Georgie Lane in the BBC military drama Our Girl (2016–2020). Keegan has also starred as Tina Moore in the biopic Tina and Bobby (2017), Erin Croft in Sky Max comedy Brassic (2019–present), Kate Thorne in BBC period drama Ten Pound Poms (2023–present) and Maya Stern in Netflix thriller Fool Me Once (2024).
Natalie Avellino is a former Australian netball international and current netball coach. Between 1994 and 2006 she made 20 senior appearances for Australia. Avellino was a member of the Australia teams that won the gold medal at the 1995 World Netball Championships and the silver medal at the 2006 Commonwealth Games.
Annalie Antonia Longo is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays for Wellington Phoenix in the A-League Women and the New Zealand national team.
Michelle J. Payne is a retired Australian jockey. She won the 2015 Melbourne Cup, riding Prince of Penzance, and is the first and only female jockey to win the event.
Kerrin McEvoy is an Australian jockey who is best known for winning three Melbourne Cups. In Europe, McEvoy rode several big winners for Godolphin including Rule of Law in the St Leger Stakes at Doncaster in 2004 and Ibn Khaldun in the Racing Post Trophy, also at Doncaster in 2007.
The 2015 Emirates Melbourne Cup was the 155th running of the Melbourne Cup, a prestigious Australian Thoroughbred horse race. The race, run over 3,200 metres (1.988 mi), was held on 3 November 2015 at Melbourne's Flemington Racecourse. The date is a public holiday in the state of Victoria. The final field for the race was declared on 31 October. The total prize money for the race was A$6.2 million, the same as the previous year.
Prince of Penzance is a New Zealand-bred Thoroughbred race horse who won the 2015 Melbourne Cup. He was trained by Darren Weir. In the race, he was ridden by Michelle Payne, who became the first female jockey to win the race.
Kerryn Manning is an Australian horse trainer-driver and a world champion reinswoman in the sport of harness racing.
Embankment Films is a British film and television sales and production company based in London, England.
Michelle Law is an Australian writer. She is known for the web series Homecoming Queens, and the book Sh*t Asian Mothers Say, co-authored by her brother Benjamin Law, and her 2017 play Single Asian Female. She is of Chinese descent.
Richard Lachlan Keddie is an Australian producer, writer and director. He is best known for his work on biopics of Australian Prime Ministers Bob Hawke (Hawke) and John Curtin (Curtin), feature films Little Fish, Oddball and Ride Like a Girl, and television miniseries After the Deluge.
Edwina Preston is a Melbourne-based writer and musician. Preston is the author of a biography of Australian artist Howard Arkley, Not Just a Suburban Boy, and the novel The Inheritance of Ivorie Hammer. Her writing and reviews have appeared in The Age, The Australian, The Sydney Morning Herald, Heat, Island and Griffith Review.
The 1987 Melbourne Cup was a handicap horse race which took place on Tuesday, 3 November 1987 over 3200m, at Flemington Racecourse for a stake of $1,285,000.
