A small string.
A significant record.
A story still being written.
Kerry has trained major winners on some of British National Hunt racing’s biggest stages, from Cheltenham and Chepstow to Warwick, Newbury and Kelso, with Grade 1 success across the Irish Sea at Fairyhouse. Since taking over the licence at Bell House in 2015, she has built a record that spans high-class novice chasers, established staying chasers and talented hurdlers. Each achievement reflects the same ambition: to give the individual horse the best opportunity to fulfil its potential.
Those results are especially notable because they have come from a comparatively small string. The yard’s story is not defined by one horse or one type of race, but by performers who have progressed in different ways: young horses developing through the ranks, seasoned campaigners returning to favourite tracks and tough handicappers making their mark in competitive company. The horses below represent some of the most memorable chapters in that story—and, in Nemean Lion’s case, a chapter still being written.
The first season
Sandown success · Grand National Trial
Bishops Road made an immediate impression after joining Kerry’s yard, winning at Sandown on 2 January 2016 by 17 lengths. The following month, he stepped up in distance to land the Grade 3 Betfred Grand National Trial at Haydock under Richard Johnson, beating Broadway Buffalo by nine lengths. Those two commanding victories made him another notable staying chaser in a memorable first season for the Bell House team.
Welsh Grand National
Mountainous holds a special place in the Lee family’s history. Richard trained him to win the Welsh Grand National in December 2013; after Kerry took over the licence, he returned to Chepstow to win the postponed renewal in January 2016 under Jamie Moore. That second victory made him the first dual winner since Bonanza Boy, adding a memorable new chapter to Bell House’s long association with the great staying chase.
Betfred Classic Chase
Russe Blanc delivered another memorable staying-chase success in Kerry’s first season. Ridden by Charlie Poste, he won Warwick’s Grade 3 Betfred Classic Chase in January 2016, staying on strongly to beat Midnight Prayer by three and three-quarter lengths. Officially registered as white, he was an instantly recognisable presence on the racecourse. His Warwick victory remains one of the standout achievements of the yard’s early years under Kerry’s licence.
Game Spirit · Normans Grove Chase
Top Gamble was a high-class chaser and a key performer in Kerry’s first season. In February 2016, he defeated reigning Champion Chase winner Dodging Bullets in Newbury’s Grade 2 Game Spirit Chase under Richard Johnson. The following month he added Fairyhouse’s Grade 2 Normans Grove Chase with a decisive seven-length victory. His career also included a fourth-place finish in the Queen Mother Champion Chase, underlining his ability to compete with the best.
Ryanair Gold Cup Novice Chase
Kylemore Lough gave Kerry a landmark success in her first season with the licence. At Fairyhouse in March 2016, he won the Grade 1 Ryanair Gold Cup Novice Chase under Barry Geraghty, defeating Outlander by a length. It was Kerry’s first runner in Ireland and her first Grade 1 winner, completing a sequence of five consecutive victories and establishing the Bell House team at the highest level.
Developing winners
Ayr success · Edinburgh Gin Handicap Hurdle
Kris Spin enjoyed a productive 2017–18 season for Kerry, winning at Ayr in November before adding victories at Fontwell and Kelso the following spring. His standout performance came in the Edinburgh Gin Handicap Hurdle at Kelso in April 2018, when Richard Patrick guided him to a two-and-a-quarter-length success. His achievements are a reminder that the yard’s record includes determined staying hurdlers as well as its better-known stars over fences.
Three Cheltenham victories
Magic Dancer’s record combines Cheltenham success with the longevity of a seasoned campaigner. He won the Fairlight Books Novices’ Handicap Hurdle there in November 2017 and returned to score over hurdles in April 2018, both under Richard Patrick. In November 2022, he added the Glenfarclas Veterans’ Handicap Chase, his third victory at the track. Those wins, together with success over fences at Ludlow, made him a rewarding performer for the Magic Partnership.
Cheltenham success
BetVictor Gold Cup
Happy Diva became one of the yard’s most recognisable and admired mares. Her defining victory came in Cheltenham’s BetVictor Gold Cup in November 2019, when she and Richard Patrick prevailed by a neck in a fiercely competitive finish. She was the first mare to win the race since 2000. Returning to the Cheltenham Festival in March 2020, she finished an excellent second in the Brown Advisory & Merriebelle Stable Plate.
A current chapter
Premier Novices’ · Kingwell · National Spirit
Nemean Lion remains one of the yard’s leading performers and is currently in training and due to run. His achievements include the Grade 2 Premier Novices’ Hurdle at Kelso in March 2023, the Grade 2 Kingwell Hurdle at Wincanton in February 2024 and the Grade 2 National Spirit Hurdle at Fontwell in February 2025. His quality and determination continue to make him an exciting horse for the Bell House team.
For one horse it may mean competing at Graded level. For another, it may mean finding the right trip, restoring confidence, improving its form or progressing through the handicap.
The objective remains the same: to understand what each horse is capable of and give it the best possible opportunity to achieve it.