Carey Mulligan, the English Oscar-nominated actress, came to Newbury Racecourse this afternoon to enjoy the 58th running of the Hennessy Gold Cup, the oldest commercial sponsorship in world sport.

Mulligan, who made her film debut in Pride & Prejudice in 2005, was nominated for Best Actress at the 2009 Academy Awards for her role as Jenny in An Education. She has also starred in The Greatest, Never Let Me Go, Drive and The Great Gatsby.

Celebrities including former Spice Girl Mel C, Jennifer Saunders, Cilla Black and Martin Clunes assembled in the parade ring before the big race which was won by Many Clouds.

Today’s attendance was 17,351, which is up 7% from last year (16,461). Over the three-day festival 30,215 attended, compared with 28,167 from last year.

Julian Thick, CEO of Newbury Racecourse said: “The Hennessy Gold Cup is one of the greatest races on the National Hunt calendar and congratulations to the connections of Many Clouds, who produced a superb performance.

“Hennessy Gold Cup day is also the social highlight of the winter and we are thrilled that so many people came to enjoy the action. It was great to see all the famous faces here again and massive thanks go to our sponsors Hennessy and bet365 for helping make this a truly memorable three-day festival.”