Poetry in motion

Tony Brooks

It has taken 15 years of relentless persuasion to convince Tony Brooks that he should write his autobiography. In the 1950s he revealed himself to be one of Britain's foremost grand prix drivers, yet throughout his career he shunned publicity, preferring to let his on-track performances speak for themselves. This is why Sir Stirling Moss, on many occasions his team-mate in Formula One and sports car races, has described him as "the greatest 'little known' driver of all time". His motor racing career began at Goodwood in 1952 at the wheel of his mother's Healey Silverstone sports car. Three years later, having never previously sat in a Formula One car, he drove a Connaught to victory in the Syracuse Grand Prix, beating the entire Maserati works team at a time when the Italians dominated the sport; it was the first GP victory for a British car and driver for 31 years. Tony's unique...