Sir Hamish Gilkuddy
Chris Beddows tells the tale of a remarkable man
My grandfather was the Scottish motorsport pioneer - Sir Hamish Gilkuddy. He was a pilot and killed in 1941 over the Channel.
Such a bald, simple outline but for those who knew him, and as revealed by his recently discovered journal, he was a truly unique character who was both a product of his time and for all time.
Scoundrel, humane philanthropist, early aviator, thespian, motor racing and record breaking pioneer, auto manufacturer, government espionage agent in WWI, social climber, sexual adventurer and hero… these are but some of the aspects of my amazing grandfather that can now be shared with the world.
Most of his activities are graphically chronicled in the Gilkuddy Photogravure Collection that remains in the hands of his family and extracts of which are revealed here for the very first time.
He was a difficult man to get on with at times. He did not suffer fools gladly and his obsessions and eccentricities made him many enemies. He was a Scot through and through. His loathing of the English was only exceeded by his hatred of the Hun (as he always referred to them). He was a definite Francophile and a supporter of “The Auld Alliance” as he called it.
His relationship with The Prince of Wales and Mrs Simpson is also documented in his Journal – with an amusing motoring twist.
Below we've assembled some fascinating snippets from this diaries. More will follow.
" Not everything was handed me on the silver spoon that had recently been placed in my mouth. I lacked experience and that is something that nobody can buy no matter what their material condition.”
|
| “As I ducked down below the level of the scuttle I remember thinking that I wished I had fitted some sort of pipe structure to protect the upper body in situation like this. I was lucky.” |
"Brooklands tended to be where we raced in Britain. There were races on the sands at some resorts like Southport or Pendine. But purpose built circuits were thin on the ground and some stupid English MP had got a bill through parliament that banned public roads being closed for the occasion of a race – so it was Weybridge in Surrey that we raced at on the steeply banked Brooklands track.
I was starting to make something of a reputation for myself and decided that, even though clouds of war were starting to be seen, I would attempt to make my mark by going for the outright record for the fastest lap of Brooklands.
Maybe not too many people realize how dangerous the outer circuit could be. Ever since it opened in 1908 Brooklands had been plagued by bumps and dips on the high banking. Photographers would gather at the worst and attempt to take photos that showed cars with all four wheels airborne. With my mechanic Archie Nash, a young lad just out of technical college I worked on a body design that would help to keep the Straker Squire that I was then racing pressed down to the track by the force of the wind generated by my speed.
The result was a rather odd looking car but one that I saw as beautiful and still do. We did not get the absolute lap record but won a few handicap races and finally managed a lap in excess of 130 mph. In later years Archie Nash worked for a time with BMW in Bavaria. I cannot help but think their 328 model bore a resemblance in the radiator region to our design.
More to follow soon...
Copyright © Chris Beddows 2004
By coincidence, I saw a vision from this same era a few weeks ago.
A big old Bentley hammering down the A4 near Marlborough, with the driver leaning forward, grappling with the huge steering wheel, and really giving the car some beans !
You are so used to seeing old cars being treated like china museum pieces, it was a pleasure to see someone driving the car like the sports car it was, and still is.
Made my day ! I wanted to stop the chap and shake his hand.
CanAm said:
Great to see a feature on Historical Motor Racing. Many thanks Chris; looking forward to further instalments soon. Perhaps we could have something on the exploits of the legendary Edgar Jessop for our two-wheel fans?
I fear that for now you must remain disappointed in your hope to see anything of Edgar Jessop - a great rider.
But my grandfather has some fascinating description of his chum Eric Fernihough going for 170 mph on a public road! This will be part of a later snippet.
Chris
toppstuff said:
More please !!!!
By coincidence, I saw a vision from this same era a few weeks ago.
A big old Bentley hammering down the A4 near Marlborough, with the driver leaning forward, grappling with the huge steering wheel, and really giving the car some beans !
You are so used to seeing old cars being treated like china museum pieces, it was a pleasure to see someone driving the car like the sports car it was, and still is.
Made my day ! I wanted to stop the chap and shake his hand.
toppstuff, if you get the chance, come on a Bentley Drivers Club jolly with me, the majority of the vintage boys are like this.
Incidentally, a Google search on Hamish Gilkuddy has only one hit - the PH article.
Nice try though.
JonRB said:
It's an amusing article, for sure, and I will look forward to reading others in much the same way as I look forward to new installments of PistonSlap, SniffPetrol and Weebl & Bob.
Incidentally, a Google search on Hamish Gilkuddy has only one hit - the PH article.
Nice try though.
It is only in the last year that anyone has been allowed to read anything about my grandfather.
In some later installments you will be introduced to his contribution to the RAF's war effort in WWII. His secret work meant that for reasons of security his files and all documents have been locked away and release was only given last year.
In fact there are some documents that are still not for public gaze (or family gaze come to that!)
vixpy1 said:
Did he race at brooklands during 1932- 33 becuase its highly likely he raced against my Grandfather.
In 32 and 33 he was very busy with a scheme to launch an attack on the land speed record on a frozen lake in Norway but he is shown as competing in a number of handicap races as well as in the 500 Miles Race.
I do so hope that my grandfather and yours ran laps together at Brooklands. Talk about six degrees of separation!
Balmoral Green said:
More please !!!!
By coincidence, I saw a vision from this same era a few weeks ago.
A big old Bentley hammering down the A4 near Marlborough, with the driver leaning forward, grappling with the huge steering wheel, and really giving the car some beans !
You are so used to seeing old cars being treated like china museum pieces, it was a pleasure to see someone driving the car like the sports car it was, and still is.
Made my day ! I wanted to stop the chap and shake his hand.
toppstuff, if you get the chance, come on a Bentley Drivers Club jolly with me, the majority of the vintage boys are like this.
We were strolling down Bond Street last year and there was some sort of 007 evening going on. Anyway, there were a number of Vintage Bentleys and then a transporter rolled up and out rolled the Le Mans Bentley racing car! A most enjoyable evening...
Do the club meets consist mostly of vintage Bentleys or more modern cars?
At the last count (2003 membership) there were 1952 Crewe cars, 607 Derby cars, and 1112 Vintage cars in the Club. Not to mention a handfull of BMW engined atrocities and no doubt a few of them VW Phaeton/Skoda Tudor concept car hybrid thingies by now too.
I wondered how I could view the photos as I am unable to open them. Are any of them of the Straker Squire he drove at Brooklands?
We own an ex-Brooklands Strake Squire apparently used by the car's designer Roy Fedden and others from 1908 to 1912.
In later years it was fitted with a rudimentary streamlined body to keep it competitive and had at least three different engine fitted over the years before being exported to Australia by the 1920s. Hope this could be the same car!
Cheers
Gassing Station | General Gassing [Archive] | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff