I wouldn't say I've been the biggest punter on the racecourse in the past 45 years,' starts Johnny Lights, self-deprecatingly, 'but at my height people certainly knew I was around. They knew me in four corners of the country... and Scotland! Bookies weren't always frightened of what I was backing, but I certainly made a noise in the market. Yes, you could say I have invested fair sums. I've put lumps on - real thick bets - and I've lost bundles in a day. I've filled up my tank just as quick. When I wasn't about, bookmakers noticed a difference in their turnover.'

Mr Johnny Lights, though he would never admit it himself, is a gambling legend. In a game stacked with personalities, his is a name that is never far from the lips of the players who really matter. Gambling has been his way of life since the age of 12, when he claims he was already compulsive. One day he'd pretend to be 13 to visit New Cross dogs without paying. The next he'd be at the Wimbledon track, strictly over 18s only, with a fag in his mouth. Cash came from helping his Dad at a fruit and veg stall (it was decorated with light bulbs, hence the nickname) and settling bets, again for his father, who moonlighted as an illegal street bookie.

By the time he was 15 and finished with school in South London, young Johnny (quite rightly, in retrospect) decided he was too smart to work. He jacked in an ill-fated four-week spell in Covent Garden Market selling flowers when he won £15 (three weeks' wages) one night on the dogs. The next week he went skint, picked up a day job working with illegal street traders on Oxford Street and committed himself to building up the necessary funds to get back to the track.

A year later, he did just that. This time he was building up to £300 and started looking around. He became careful and selective. He realised that gambling wasn't the game he originally thought it was: the same people kept on winning while others kept burning their money and disappearing. Lights got smart and by 1964 was getting build-ups of £800 and started going horse racing. But he was never fully secure as a pro punter. Then in 1966, God smiled, England won the World Cup and Johnny never looked back.

'The World Cup was fantastic for me,' explains Johnny. 'I bought and sold tickets outside the grounds. The profits were big as England got into the finals and I ended up with a couple of grand. This was more money than I'd ever had in my life. It was my chance to get going.'

The thrill of the chase
With his tank full to bursting, Johnny went racing full-time. He bought a pair of binoculars, found out he liked jumping better than flat and played them running. He kept his wits sharp and his expenses low. When photo finishes came in he realised there was an 'edge' and seized the opportunity - bookies would be pleased to give a few quid away on a horse that was a winner for them to keep their books straight, for 'insurance'. Next came betting on objections, hanging round the rails and getting to know the owners and trainers. It was a lifestyle as near to perfection as a punter could get.

Then came the pain. The mental torture of losing badly, losing your mind and trying to gamble it all back at once. In the game, they call it 'the chase' and it's a demon that every rookie punter has to face at some time or another. Lights' chase was so bad it almost ensured his career was over before it started.

'I was at Royal Ascot in the 1960s, I had just got going and I was playing quite big,' explains Lights, still wincing visibly with pain some 40 years later. 'I was on a successful run. I had bet on an objection - Rock Hopper was the horse, I'll never forget it - and bet 7/1 on that he would keep the race. I invested £70,000 in credit - a massive amount at the time. I really thought the horse hadn't done anything wrong. The objection was against him taking another horse's ground. We watched the final furlong replayed on TV and there was no issue. It looked a sure thing. People were trying to put on any money they could.

'Then came the steward's announcement. The objection was sustained. The interference had taken place with two furlongs to go. When the whole race was played back it was obvious to everyone watching what had happened. But then it was too late: everyone had done the money. I lost my mind. I was at the chase for the rest of the meeting and ended up doing £160,000, about 90% of my tank. It was like riding along on a push-bike and running into a 16-wheeler. Horrendous.'

Against all odds
Now Lights had a stark choice: he could welsh on his bets and leave the game, or cough up. Leaving professional gambling was unthinkable (what else would he do?), so he paid his dues and went back to basics. He studied the form books, weathered the storm and regained his cool. He would get a spanking again - for £173,000 as a rails bookie next to Gary Wiltshire and Stephen Little on Dettori Day - but the financial damage was less severe. So too was the psychological pain. By this time Lights knew how you handle it. Sure, he saw it go boss-eyed on the day and felt the world was against him for a second. Then he packed his bag, regained his cool and carried on picking winners elsewhere.

'Ah, winners...' smiles Johnny. 'I've had some lovely touches over the years. When Nashwan won the Derby I did really well. I had bundles on it because the Hearn Yard were so bullish. On the day, all the connections were screaming about it and I couldn't see anything that could give it any trouble. I stuck another thick bet on it and thankfully my plunge came off big time.'

But Johnny has bet on much more than racing. Football is a big area of expertise (he's got £20,000 at 5/4 that Chelsea will finish in the top three of the Premiership this year) because it appeals to his deeply held belief that 'good teams beat bad'. That sounds facile until you realise how many people bet on teams outside the big three (Arsenal, Man Utd and Chelsea) and how strong those three are compared to everyone else in terms of revenue and investment. For Johnny, a club's income stream is like a bloodline in racing, and it's a view that's paid off hugely over the years.

'I won't say that bet is a certainty,' explains Lights, 'and I won't say they won't be beaten. But the saying "form is temporary, class is permanent" springs to mind. And I'd be really astounded if it didn't happen.'

Now, at 56, in the autumn of his gambling career, Lights no longer feels the need to chase round the nation's racecourses as much as he once did. The turning point came a few months ago when he drove 200 miles to Hereford and tried to place £2,000 each way on a horse. The course bookie offered him £50 each way. Johnny's razor-sharp mind immediately flashed him mental images of Betfair, his comfortable sofa and multi-channel TV, and one suspects that racing may never be quite the same for him again.

No pain, no gain
And anyway, the big man has retired. That's what he says, anyway. These days he's moved to the South Coast, only puts on 'a few grand a week' with friendly bookies like Corals 'who you can still get ten , 20 or 30 grand on with' and watches Test Match cricket 'with a couple of grand' on his preferred team. And he's fascinated by TV and online poker. Make of that what you will...

'Well, I'm retired as far as the Inland Revenue are concerned,' laughs Lights, realising the irony of his own admissions. 'But actually, I'd like to get involved with punters in an advisory role. I'd like to enlighten youngsters to all the suffering you have to do in gambling if you think it's for you. But like I said before, gambling is in my blood. The day I give up gambling is the day they put nails in my box!'

JOHNNY'S FIVE GOLDEN RULES

1.) It is absolutely imperative to control yourself when things go wrong. A baby can handle winning, but it's how you manage your emotions when you're losing that makes you a good or bad punter.

2.) When things are going wrong, limit your bets. And bet with your head!

3.) Treat every race individually. If you're down £5,000, don't bet on a race you wouldn't be interested in if you were £5,000 up. Don't let what happens on the day affect your judgement.

4.) Keep a Profit & Loss account. Be truthful! Write down what you're gambling at and how you go. Review these figures regularly and analyse your performance. Learn from your past form!

5.) Gambling is like having kids: you only get out what you put in.