My granddad, on my dad's side, was a bookie from the 40s and 50s (and onwards).
When my dad was a young lad, around 13 or 14, he was working on the till, taking the bets. He was quite a cocky lad, so when an Irish man came in and betted a grand (a fortune in those days) on a [I've forgotten the name of it, but when you bet 10 to get 11, or soo... basiclly, shit odds] in some obscure race in Ireland, he proudly took on the bet.

In those days, if an Irishman put on that sort of bet, it was pretty much guaranteed to be a fixed race. He sent my Dad and all his brothers all the way up'n'down the east end to place the same bet in order to make up the inevitable loss.

They ended up making a fortune that night, and started doing that very often, they became known for becoming one of the only bookies that'll take that sort of bet on, and everyone made money.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Mon 11 May 2009, 19:20, Reply)