Book excerpt: Seven drinking buddies decide to buy a racehorse and embark on the journey of a lifetime in the book that inspired the film Outside Bet. It's 1985 - Thatcher is in power, Sade is on the radio and the print workers have gone on strike. A motley rabble of seven firm friends: Thimble, Gudger, O'Sh, Fred the Shoe, Dave, Alfie and Bax meet every Sunday in their favourite South London boozer for banter of the highest order and a lot of taking the mick. Then, out of the blue, one of their number receives some news which knocks him and his merry band for six. Reeling from this shock and confused about how to deal with it, the boys meet and rally in standard fashion, in the Dutchman with a few light ales and an aim to set the world to rights. One day an unknown character approaches the crew and asks them a most intriguing question...'Does anyone here want to buy a racehorse?!' From that simple but surreal question unfolds the story of seven likely lads who embark on a unique journey in the name of their mate, and what happens when they just decide to go the whole bifta.