Hughie Morrison has already attended one momentous royal occasion this year, having been among the guests at Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding.

And now the East Ilsley trainer is set to be in the midst of another as he runs outsider Pisco Sour in the Investec Derby at Epsom on Saturday when the Queen is due to be represented by hot favourite Carlton House.

Having trained Sohraab for a syndicate, which includes the Middleton family, Morrison and his wife, Mary, were invited to Westminster Abbey and the reception at Buckingham Palace.

“We were very honoured to do that,” says the 50-year-old master of Summerdown Stables as he walks across the springy turf of Compton Downs after watching third lot canter up the sand gallop.

“It was fantastic to be part of it. Not only was it very special, it was very enjoyable.

“It was also a great day for the country.”

With Her Majesty’s involvement – although a late decision is expected tomorrow on Carlton House’s participation after the colt suffered a minor setback – Morrison is only too aware that the eyes of the nation will fall on Epsom at 4pm.

“It would be fantastic for racing if the Queen won,” he adds as the skylarks sing above.

“She is a very important part of the sport with her patronage and involvement.

“I think if we beat Carlton House a short head I would feel a bit muted because she is such an advertisement for the sport.”

Pisco Sour, who will be a first Derby runner for Morrison, has already run against the Queen’s star this term, finishing a four-lengths third behind him, with Seville runner-up, in the totesport Dante Stakes at York last month.

And although he is a top-priced 100-1 shot, the trainer believes Pisco Sour – who is named after a cocktail – has a chance of being in the shake-up for a place.

“On Betfair the other week he was 400-1 which was a bit of an insult, so I couldn’t resist having a fiver at those odds,” he says.

“We are not expecting to win. The owners are realistic. They are in it for the fun of it.

“But rarely do you find you have a chance of running a horse in the Derby with a chance of being placed.”

Those owners are London-based asset management chief Michael Kerr-Dineen, together with old work colleagues Bill Eason, the brother of Horspath CC stalwart Max Eason, and Mickey Pallet.

Some experts felt the three-year-old son of Lemon Drop Kid, who made much of the running at York under Jimmy Fortune, was flattered by his proximity to the first two.

Morrison says: “I suspect the Derby will probably confirm that, but taking the positive view, we would say we set it up for the winner and the second, and we beat the Derby favourite (World Domination) at the time and were staying on again.

“I think if it had been a mile and a half, and if we had a lead horse, we might then have finished very close.”

The trainer, whose father, James, owned Oaks winners Juliette Marny and Scintillate, has also taken encouragement from the success of Pisco Sour’s work companion, Sagramor, in the valuable Betfred Silver Bowl at Haydock recently.

“The run will hopefully bring him on again, and if one is taking the example of Sagramor, hopefully he will come on at least 10lbs, which would put him in with a chance of being placed,” he adds of the colt, who was bought at the Tattersalls Sales as a yearling for 100,000gns, having been bred by Newmarket’s Hascombe Stud.

“We have got the form. We don’t really want to be considered to be making up the numbers.

“We are there to do our best and finish in the first six. If we do that and the horse comes back in one piece, we have had a result.”