Chester Racecourse has transformed the historic Paradise Row into an open, welcoming entrance set against a backdrop of more than 9,000 plants.

The ‘living wall’ has been designed and planted by head gardener Gwenda Kidd and is perfect for those pre-race selfies for racegoers attending the prestigious Boodles May Festival which runs over three-days from Wednesday (May 9) to Friday (May 11).

Director of racing Andrew Morris said: “There will be a great buzz with a band playing under the canopy now located on part of Paradise Row everyday throughout the Boodles May Festival. The concept is to open out and extend the welcome to all our racegoers from the moment they approach Chester Racecourse.”

The ‘living wall’ is perfect for those pre-race selfies

A team of local craftsmen have been working on completing the new additions to Chester Racecourse since November 2017 which includes a broad staircase and patio doors opening into the popular Long Room.

The Walls bar, described by Mr Morris as his ‘new favourite place on Chester Racecourse’, incorporates a stunning limestone feature and a window providing a close-up view the unique Roman Walls, which will prove to be a further popular backdrop for those all-important race-day photographs.

Chester Races

He added: “The Centennial Celebration – MBNA Chester Vase entry includes some top class horses and the Arkle Finance Cheshire Oaks entries include a number of fillies with clear potential. Our new race, the 188Bet Chester Plate recognizes the long history of the racecourse on Friday and there is a new trophy for the traditional opening race, the Stellar Group Lily Agnes Conditions Stakes.

“We are set fair for a fantastic three days of racing on the Roodee.

“Despite having one of the wettest winters on record I’ve been fairly happy with condition of the course over the last month. We’ve sprayed the track with liquid iron to improve the hardiness and colour of the grass, which will have been cut every 24-hours leading up to the meeting. The water table is high so the drying out process will be slow; conditions won’t change much during the three days of the meeting.”