More than 100 of the world’s most celebrated Grand Prix racing cars will come together at Brooklands Museum on 7–8 August to celebrate the centenary of Britain’s first Grand Prix, staged at the birthplace of British motorsport exactly 100 years ago on Saturday 7 August 1926.
Opened in 1907, Brooklands was the world’s first purpose-built banked motor racing circuit and the natural venue for the Royal Automobile Club to organise the UK’s inaugural Grand Prix – a seminal occasion that laid the foundations for Britain’s unrivalled future success in Grand Prix racing. Since then, Britain has produced more Grand Prix-winning drivers and teams than any other nation, as well as more Formula One World Champions.
Marking this trailblazing milestone in spectacular style, the Brooklands Centenary event will feature one of the world’s largest-ever gatherings of Grand Prix cars. Festivities begin with an exclusive VIP Preview on the Friday evening, followed by a sensational sold-out Saturday featuring legendary racing machinery both on static display and in action on sections of the historic Brooklands banking and the adjoining Mercedes-Benz World test track. While Saturday tickets have now sold out, a limited number of places remain available for the Friday Preview.
With so many iconic Grand Prix cars assembled in one place, visitors will be treated to extraordinary sights and sounds spanning every era of top-level motor racing. Selecting just ten highlights is no easy task, but these are among the legendary machines no enthusiast will want to miss.
1926 Delage 15-S-8
Based near Paris, French manufacturer Delage was a dominant force in Grand Prix racing during the 1920s, winning both the 1926 and 1927 Grands Prix staged at Brooklands. Two magnificent 15-S-8s will return to celebrate the centenary of the first of those victories.
Chassis #2 (photo below top) is based on the factory team’s practice car for the 1926 race and will be displayed statically, while chassis #4 was famously later raced at Brooklands by Richard “Dick” Seaman, Britain’s greatest racing driver of the 1930s. Its sonorous supercharged 1.5-litre straight-eight engine produces one of the most evocative soundtracks in motorsport history.
1926 Halford Special
The Halford Special (photo above) was a distinctive British racing car and one of just nine starters in the 1926 Grand Prix of the Royal Automobile Club. Built on an Aston Martin chassis, it was engineered and raced by Major Frank Halford, running comfortably inside the top three before retiring with transmission failure after 82 of the 110 laps.
One of the most advanced British-built racing cars of its era, its six-cylinder engine was originally fitted with a turbocharger, making it widely regarded as the world’s first turbo-assisted racing car. The car was later sold to Captain George Eyston, who raced it at Brooklands before finishing fourth in the 1927 French Grand Prix.
1926 Thomas ‘Flatiron’ Special
Designed and built at Brooklands by pioneering Welsh engineer and racing driver John Godfrey Parry Thomas, the Thomas ‘Flatiron’ Special was entered for the 1926 Grand Prix but made its competition debut later that year.
Although best remembered for his Land Speed Record exploits in the mighty 27-litre Babs – a pursuit that tragically claimed his life on Pendine Sands in 1927 – Parry Thomas also created two remarkably advanced Grand Prix cars in his Brooklands workshop. One has been lost to history, while the surviving car has recently been painstakingly restored and, exactly a century later, will run publicly at Brooklands for the first time since before the Second World War.
1925 Sunbeam ‘Tiger’ and ‘Tigress’
The mighty 4-litre V12 Sunbeam Tiger was built in Wolverhampton during the 1920s as both a circuit racer and Land Speed Record contender. After debuting at Brooklands in 1925, Henry Seagrave drove Tiger to a new Land Speed Record of 152.33mph on Southport beach in March 1926 before returning the car to Brooklands competition.
Sunbeam also built a sister car, Tigress, which was at one stage powered by a Napier Lion aero engine but is now back in original form. For the first time in more than 80 years, these two remarkable machines will be reunited at Brooklands for the Centenary celebrations.
1932 Maserati 8C 3000
Owned by the Louwman Museum in the Netherlands, this eight-cylinder Maserati 8C 3000 occupies a poignant place in motorsport history.
It was driven to third place in the 1933 Tripoli Grand Prix by Sir Henry ‘Tim’ Birkin, one of Britain’s greatest pre-war racing drivers and a celebrated member of the legendary ‘Bentley Boys’. During the race Birkin suffered a minor burn to his arm from the car’s hot exhaust while refuelling. Tragically, after leaving the wound untreated, he contracted blood poisoning, which ultimately proved fatal.
1938 Alfa Romeo 158/9
Lovingly known as the ‘Alfetta’, the Alfa Romeo 158/9 is one of the most successful Grand Prix cars ever built.
Originally designed before the Second World War, it dominated the early years of the Formula One World Championship, winning 47 of its 54 Grand Prix starts. It carried Giuseppe Farina to Formula One’s inaugural World Championship in 1950 before Juan Manuel Fangio claimed the first of his five titles in 1951. Its thunderous supercharged straight-eight engine remains one of historic motorsport’s greatest auditory experiences.
1950 BRM V16
Conceived as the ultimate showcase for British engineering by British Racing Motors, the BRM V16 remains one of motor racing’s most unforgettable creations, celebrated as much for its astonishing soundtrack as its technical ambition.
Its supercharged 1.5-litre V16 engine developed more than 600bhp while producing a piercing, high-pitched scream unlike anything else in racing. Even today, the BRM V16’s unforgettable exhaust note is widely regarded as one of motorsport’s greatest sounds, perfectly capturing the excitement, drama and engineering daring of Britain’s post-war Grand Prix era.
Visitors to Brooklands will have the rare opportunity to experience both the sight and sound of this legendary machine in action.
1991 McLaren-Honda MP4/6 V12
Local Formula One team McLaren Racing is a major supporter of the Brooklands Centenary celebrations. Alongside one of its latest papaya-liveried hybrid Formula One cars raced by reigning World Champion Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, the team will also demonstrate the unforgettable Honda V12-powered MP4/6 on the Mercedes-Benz World circuit.
The naturally aspirated V12 era is widely regarded as Formula One’s greatest acoustic symphony, and the iconic red-and-white MP4/6 recalls the unforgettable period when Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost dominated the sport.
2009 Brawn BGP 001
The story of Brawn GP is one of Formula One’s greatest fairy tales. Following Honda’s surprise withdrawal from the sport at the end of 2008, Ross Brawn purchased the team for just £1. Despite limited resources, Brawn GP produced a revolutionary car featuring the now-famous double diffuser, giving it a decisive competitive advantage.
Jenson Button won six of the opening seven races on his way to securing the Drivers’ Championship, while Brawn GP claimed the Constructors’ Championship in its only season before being sold to Mercedes. Just three BGP 001 chassis were built for Button and team-mate Rubens Barrichello – and all three will be reunited at Brooklands.
2010 Mercedes AMG Petronas W01 – 04
From its beginnings at Brooklands, British motorsport has grown into one of the world’s greatest sporting success stories. The FIA Formula One World Championship began at Silverstone in 1950, and since then British teams and drivers have consistently led the way. BRM, Brabham, Cooper, Lotus and Tyrrell have all won multiple Constructors’ Championships, while 11 British drivers have amassed an extraordinary 21 World Championships.
Sir Lewis Hamilton is the most successful of them all, sharing the all-time record of seven World Championships with Michael Schumacher. Six of Hamilton’s titles came with Mercedes which returned to F1 in 2010 having purchased Brawn. The Three-Pointed Star’s latest era of success is represented by the Mercedes AMG Petronas W01 raced by Schumacher in 2010.
These ten cars represent only the pinnacle of an extraordinary celebration marking the centenary of Britain’s first Grand Prix but are only the tip of the metaphorical iceberg. The story will commence with the 1908 Austin GP, one of the first British GP cars and include multiple Bugatti Type 35s, the most prolifically-produced GP car of all times as well as T37s, T51s and T59s.
The following chapter will feature a brace of striking Mercedes-Benz W125s as well as ERA GP1 and GP2, Britain’s most sophisticated GP car until the introduction of the BRM V12. Locally-built Cooper Climaxes will also be out in force, heralding the switch from front- to mid-engined F1 design. Add in a host of Brabhams, Ferraris, Lotuses and countless other idolised marques – as well as pioneers such as Ferguson’s innovative four-wheel-drive P99 and Tyrrell’s six-wheeled P34 – and it is easy to see just how comprehensive and exceptional this one-off Brooklands Grand Prix Centenary Celebration is going to be.
“The 1926 Grand Prix changed the course of British motorsport forever,” said Alex Patterson, CEO Brooklands Museum. “The race marked the moment Britain joined the world’s greatest racing nations, and its legacy can still be seen today in the remarkable success of British teams, drivers and engineers on the Formula One stage. Bringing together more than 100 Grand Prix cars at the very place where that story began is a once-in-a-lifetime celebration, and we’re delighted to be sharing these extraordinary machines with enthusiasts of every age.”
Indeed, as well as the amazing cars already highlighted, other marques expected to be displayed include: Alvis, Amilcar, Aston Martin, Benetton, Bentley, Duesenberg, Fittipaldi, Force India, Frazer Nash, Haas, Hesketh, Honda, Jaguar, Jordan, Ligier, Lola, Lorraine-Dietrich, Minardi, Napier, Racing Point, Shadow, Surtees, Toleman and Wolf. Quite possibly the greatest gathering of Grand Prix cars ever assembled.
Although tickets for the Saturday celebrations have already sold out, visitors to Brooklands Museum throughout the summer can still enjoy the newly opened Britain’s Grand Prix Story exhibition, showcasing an exceptional collection of iconic Grand Prix and Formula One cars spanning the decades including some early arrivals for the centenary celebrations.
Alongside these legendary racing machines, visitors can explore fascinating artefacts, immersive audio experiences and interactive displays that tell the story not only of the sport’s technological evolution, but also of the ingenuity, determination and people who have driven Grand Prix racing forward for generations.
Brooklands Museum is open daily throughout the summer from 10.00am to 5.00pm. Advance admission is priced at £25.70 for adults and £10.70 for children aged 4–17. Annual membership, from £68, offers unlimited admission throughout the year together with the opportunity to purchase tickets for the exclusive Grand Prix Centenary Celebration VIP Preview on Friday 7 August.
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