ANOTHER chapter was written in the history of Musselburgh Racecourse at the end of last month when Chester Race Company took over the reins for the first time.

The change of operator came almost 25 years to the day since another moment of history took place at the Honest Toun course.

Her Majesty The Queen was a very special guest at the course, where her own horse also took part in the action.

The Queen returned to the racecourse four years ago to help celebrate its 200th anniversary.

Here, we look back at the front page of the East Lothian Courier on July 7, 1995, and how the royal visit of 25 years ago was reported.

‘THE sport of kings’ proved fit for a queen on Monday evening, when Her Majesty, the Queen officially opened the new £500,000 hospitality stand at Musselburgh Racecourse.

A crowd of more than 1,000, as well as officials from the council and the racing committee, turned out to greet the Honest Toun’s distinguished visitor as she gave the new-look racecourse the Royal blessing.

The late afternoon’s chilly breeze lifted and the sun shone through as the Queen unveiled a plaque on the outside wall of the suite, which has been named the Queen’s stand. She then went on to watch the meeting’s first two races, and saw her own horse, Piquant, in action.

It was Her Majesty’s first visit to a Scottish racecourse since 1947 when, as Princess Elizabeth, she attended the first evening meeting at Hamilton Racecourse.

It was also the first Royal visit to the Honest Toun since the Queen Mother, a Burgess of Musselburgh, opened the Brunton Hall in 1971.

Monday’s event opened what promises to be a red-letter month for Musselburgh, with the town’s new swimming pool opening this Monday and the momentous Riding of the Marches ceremony taking place in just over a fortnight.

At the racecourse, the Queen saw the new hospitality stand, which forms part of a £1 million redevelopment at the 179-year-old racecourse.

The grandstand has also been completely refurbished, while the public bars and restaurants have been refitted, the course surroundings landscapes and a new office and canteen built for the stable lads.

The Queen and her entourage arrived at the racecourse at 5.30pm, to be welcomed by blue-blazered members of Musselburgh and Fisherrow Trades Band playing the National Anthem.

She was then introduced to 16-year-old Rachel Wilson, who had been chosen to present Her Majesty with a posy of flowers.

Rachel, formerly of East Linton, but who now lives in Portobello, is a member of the local branch of Riding for the Disabled, whose patron is the Princess Royal.

Her mother, Audrey, was with her when she enjoyed what was sure to be an unforgettable moment.

Her Majesty, wearing a pink and grey suit with a matching hat, was then introduced to local officials and dignitaries, and their wives.

The welcoming party included: Sir Hew Hamilton Dalrymple, Lord Lieutenant of East Lothian; Councillor George Wanless, Chairman of East Lothian District Council; Malcolm Duncan, Chief Executive of the district council; East Lothian MP John Home Robertson; The Hon Captain Gerald Maitland-Carew, Chairman of Musselburgh Joint Racing Committee; Councillor Pat O’Brien, leader of the district council; Councillor Tom Ferguson, chairman of the district council’s Leisure and Tourism Committee; Musselburgh East Councillor Chic Moohan; and Lothians Racing Syndicate members the Hon George Weir, Peter Innes, and David Bowes-Lyon.

After the presentations, Councillor Wanless invited the Queen to unveil the plaque in the stand, to commemorate her visit.

He said: “It is a great pleasure for me to welcome you here this evening to Musselburgh Racecourse.

“Can I say how pleased we are that you have come racing to Musselburgh.”

Captain Maitland-Carew offered a vote of thanks to Her Majesty after the unveiling.

He said: “Thank you for doing us this great honour of opening our new Queen’s stand.

“This stand, plus the other major improvements to the racecourse, including a new stable lads’ canteen, has only been made possible by the generous loan and grants from the Horserace Betting Levy Board, East Lothian District Council, the European Regional Development Fund, the Horse Racing Totaliser Board, Lothian and Edinburgh Enterprise Ltd and Musselburgh Common Good Fund.

“I would also like to give special congratulations to the contractors who have done this marvellous work in such a short period of time, and also to East Lothian District Council, who co-ordinated all the work and without whom we would not all be here this evening.

“The facilities at Musselburgh Racecourse are now second to none amongst the smaller racecourses in the United Kingdom, and will give much pleasure to many racegoers for the foreseeable future.

“This is something of which the people of Musselburgh should be justly proud.”

The Queen was then invited to view the new stand named in her honour and went into the racecourse paddock to watch runners for the first race being paraded.

When the race began at 6.10pm, she took her place in the stand’s balcony and watched the proceedings through binoculars.

The crowd roared the horses on through a thrilling race and Duggan, quoted at 5-1, finished ahead to claim the Tarmac Construction Apprentices’ Handicap, sponsored by Tarmac Construction Ltd, the main contractors responsible for building the stand.

Her Majesty presented the silver trophy to the horse’s owner, Colin Booth, and trainer, David Evans.

The Queen gave the meeting’s second race her undivided attention, for her own horse, Piquant, was in the field of eight for the East Lothian District Council Handicap.

She was set for her only disappointment of the day, however, for the horse, quoted at 6-4, and ridden by Jason Weaver, trailed in seventh place.

Councillor Wanless instead presented the prize to the owner and trainer of winning horse Thatched.

Her Majesty left the racecourse at 7pm, and the crowd waved as she headed off at the end of a brief but memorable visit to the Honest Toun.