He was 68.

Buckingham and his daughter were a dominant force in Tasmanian racing for almost two decades, winning nearly every feature event.

Their racing partnership ended in tragic circumstances in May 1998 when Bev sustained severe spinal injuries in a race fall at Elwick.

Although Bev never rode again, Ted continued training and, in 2001, the family relocated to Victoria after buying a racing property at Benalla.

However, they were never able to replicate their Tasmanian success.

Bev still lives at Benalla but Ted returned to his native England about five years ago, shortly after he had suffered a stroke.

"We were estranged for quite a while after he left and didn't speak at all but I got back in touch with him at Christmas last year," Bev said yesterday.

"I'm glad that I did because it was just before he was diagnosed with brain cancer.

"He was told that he had less than 18 months to live but, dad being dad, didn't believe them and said he would fight it and move on.

"He had chemotherapy but there were a couple of tumours and, although one shrank, the other was very aggressive and kept growing.

"Luckily, there was no pain involved but he did suffer a bit from dementia towards the end.

"He died suddenly on Sunday."

Buckingham lived near his brothers and sisters after returning to England and was not working in the racing industry.

A bricklayer by trade, he became involved with thoroughbreds in the mid- 1970s and his first good horse was Brigadoon Boy.

Bev joined her father's stable as an apprentice in 1979 and went on to become a trail-blazer for female riders, setting a world record when she won the Tasmanian jockeys' premiership in 1982.

The father-daughter combination had feature-race success with many top horses, including Brave Trespasser, Dark Intruder, Dandy Lane and Exdirectory.