The 1988 Cheltenham Gold Cup was a horse race which took place at Cheltenham on 17 March 1988. It was the 61st running of the Cheltenham Gold Cup, and was won by Charter Party. The winner was ridden by Richard Dunwoody and trained by David Nicholson. The pre-race favourite Playschool pulled-up before fence 20. The event was marred by the death of the former winner Forgive 'n Forget, who broke a leg during the race and was euthanised.