On-course bookies went on strike in January

On the track, it has been a vintage period, with plenty of exciting races and equine stars like Best Mate, Persian Punch, Choisir and Falbrav capturing the public imagination and boosting crowds to record levels.

But off the course, there has been much hand-wringing caused by a series of events, of which Panorama is just one.

Chief problem for racing's authorities is the Office of Fair Trading investigation into the sport.

After a long-running probe, the OFT, which has legislative powers, has ruled that some of racing's practices are anti-competitive.

In particular, the OFT objects to the British Horseracing Board - which oversees the day-to-day running of the sport - collectively selling the picture and data rights to the sport and to it dictating to courses when they can hold race meetings.

But observers fear that allowing a free-for-all with the racing calendar will mean that several of the less profitable tracks (those which stage National Hunt meetings) will go to the wall and thus the future of jump racing will be under threat.

Meanwhile, racing's image has suffered a series of damaging blows, heightened by the impression that the sport is blighted by internal wrangling.

The BHB shot itself in the foot in December when it announced plans to charge newspapers for printing daily racecards.

Newspaper editors reacted furiously, some dropping the names of sponsors from their cards, and threatened to drop the lists of runners and riders altogether, eventually forcing the BHB into a humiliating climbdown.

Jockeys are furious at the new mobile phone restrictions

The New Year brought little relief with on-course bookmakers staging a series of strikes in protest at BHB plans to charge them 10% of their gross profits for supplying data when previously they had paid a flat annual fee.

Owners and trainers were unhappy when the minimum level of guaranteed prize money was lowered and they have been staging unofficial strikes, with several races being partially boycotted.

Currently making the headlines is the row over jockeys' use of mobile phones on the racecourse with riders forcing a recent meeting at Sandown to be called off.

The measure was one recommended by an Integrity Review Committee, which was set up in the wake of the Panorama programme.

Dettori handed phone fine

It was a no-win situation for the Jockey Club, aggravating riders with the restrictions but risking further accusations of not policing the sport properly if they did nothing.

The Club has been seen to be punishing those found guilty of wrongdoing, but on a PR level, reports of this also have the effect of re-enforcing the public impression that racing is crooked.

Ex-jockey Dermot Browne was warned off for a further 20 years while another former rider Graham Bradley was banned for five years.

Bradley has made it clear he will fight to prove his innocence and his plans to take the case to the High Court means the story - and the negative publicity for racing - could run and run.

Meanwhile, Panorama itself claimed that its revelations one year ago were merely "the tip of an iceberg" and has not ruled out the prospect of making a second programme.

The Jockey Club may have weathered the initial Panorama storm but racing itself is by no means sure of a sunny forecast in the weeks ahead.