Page 21 - THE SLOUGHI REVIEW SPECIAL ISSUE 7 B

T H E S L O U G H I R E V I E W 2 1

Mick was retired to stud with Jack Masters after that famous win but he still
remained very much in the public eye. He was often paraded before important
races like the Derby or St Leger finals. And as a celebrity he was in big demand
to help support charity events. One such event took place at Dunmore Park in
Belfast when over 10,000 people turned up to see him run in a solo trial against
the clock. A few months later he appeared in a British pathe news reel which

was titled Meet Mick the Miller. Two years later he became one of the first dogs
ever to appear in a BBC television broadcast. However in 1934 he really hit the
big time when he starred in the film Wild Boy which was based on his life story.
The film was produced by Gainsborough Pictures and directed by Albert de
Courville. It also starred Sonny Hale, Gwyneth Lloyd and comic duo Flanagan
and Allen and went on worldwide release.

10. Mick on left and Sonny Hale on right during the filming of Wild Boy.

Mick was so famous at that stage that he was chosen by Selfridges Department
Store as the VIP to open the new roof garden of their London shop. Around
that time too he was asked to attend a charity fundraising play at the Adelphi
theatre in London. He took his place in a line up of other celebrities and
politicians to be introduced to the King and Queen of England. In 1935 Mick
found himself mentioned in Alfred Hitchcock`s latest film The 39 Steps. The last
of Mick`s public appearances was at boxing tournament in January 1939 when
three of his offspring were auctioned to raise money for charity. He then
quietly lived out the rest of his life as the house pet of his old trainer Sidney
Orton. When Mick died on 5th May 1939, just days short of his 13th birthday, it
was decided he should be preserved and he was donated to the British Natural
History Museum. He went on display in the museum at South Kensington,
London a few months later where he immediately became a very popular
exhibit.