Wednesday 28th March 2012

Time for Tea: New Group B documentary

Madness on Wheels: the title of a new documentary on Group B, and as apt a description as we can think of

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Documentary maker John Mathews is carving out a bit of a niche for himself as a creator of gruesome yet fascinating motorsport histories.

First there was Deadliest Crash, the moving story of the fatal 1955 Le Mans crash in which 84 people were killed. Then there was Grand Prix The Killer Years, the astonishing tale of the commonplace death of drivers in F1 during the 60s and 70s.

Latest to add to the list is Madness on Wheels, the trailer for which is the subject of today's Time for Tea.

This time, John's telling the story of Group B rallying, when for four years manufacturers built ever more extreme and powerful rally monsters, before the barely-regulated mayhem spawned a series of tragic accidents. We haven't seen the full film, but if the trailer's anything to go by it should make pretty compelling viewing.

You can buy a copy of Madness on Wheels here but, given that both Grand Prix The Killer Years and Deadliest Crash made it to the telly box via the Beeb, we hope to see it on the haunted fish tank sooner rather than later...

 

[JohnnyF2]

Loved Group B. Was never so interested in rallying after Gp B had been stopped. Still aren't TBH.

[dtrump]

getting a copy right now

[Genelec]

Looks great, why is it in stretchyvision though?

[Mr Obertshaw]

It appears to be on at 9pm on Sunday BBC four!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01fcncc

[tbtstt]

Mr Obertshaw said:

It appears to be on at 9pm on Sunday BBC four!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01fcncc

Superb spot, thanks very much!

Will watch it on TV before I purchase. There have been many rally documentaries over the years, the majority of which have been turd, so I always watch before I buy now!

[mybrainhurts]

Where did they get that female narrator? Sounds like she was dug up from the 80s.

[bihus]

The difference to today is immense. The first image is from the jump in Fafe, where we had a special stage last weekend, in anticipation of this week's Rally of Portugal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31_8Q1ArYz4

[soad]

Wow, loved that short trailer.

[jbforce10]

mybrainhurts said:

Where did they get that female narrator? Sounds like she was dug up from the 80s.

Well at least it isn't Steve Rider narrating..... again.

[mybrainhurts]

If you don't want to wait, there's a good 1+ hour here on YouTube...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUCtYCYd1u8

[hesnotthemessiah]

mybrainhurts said:

Where did they get that female narrator? Sounds like she was dug up from the 80s.

They hire them from the BBC.

They have narrators and interviewers for all occasions. I'm particularly enamoured with the condescending tw*t interviewer person (trained in the ancient art of; 'spottythicknortherner') they hire every time they interview anyone north of Watford Gap for a programme to be shown south of Watford Gap.

[mr2j]

Disaster porn. For some spectacular Group B footage there is always (as posted by mybrainhurts) 'Too Fast to Race' and 'Still Too Fast to Race' both posted up on youtube.

Looking forward to this as I remember the 1955 Le Mans documentary although this guy might one day want to do a motorsport film that doesn't revolve around tragedy.

[Gary C]

Mr Obertshaw said:

It appears to be on at 9pm on Sunday BBC four!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01fcncc

You are a star, now set for record.

Loved group B, drove all over the country following the RAC in those years, fantastic.

[Ollieb7]

Yeah!:-D

[NismoGT]

mr2j said:

Disaster porn. For some spectacular Group B footage there is always (as posted by mybrainhurts) 'Too Fast to Race' and 'Still Too Fast to Race' both posted up on youtube.

Looking forward to this as I remember the 1955 Le Mans documentary although this guy might one day want to do a motorsport film that doesn't revolve around tragedy.

Have them both on DVD.

50 years sideways : The evolution of rallying is also excellent.

[tristanspeed]

The voiceover really lets it down. I actually do voiceovers on TV as part of my job, and I'd say from a professional point of view that this woman doesn't know what she's talking about, and that shows in her delivery. The Horizon circa 1987 tone doesn't help the effect. Something more modern in terms of voice choice would have been much more appropriate given the retrospective angle of the docco.
No voiceover at all would have been my choice - let the drivers' voices tell the story instead. Walter Rohl or Michelle Mouton talking about Group B are more interesting that scripting.

Great pics and it will be interesting to watch. I wish there was more rallying on mainstream telly!

[vincegail]

Mr Obertshaw said:

It appears to be on at 9pm on Sunday BBC four!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01fcncc

Thank you for the tip!

Problem: I only have BBC1 and 2 in Belgium, and BBC3 and 4 are in the 'plus package'.

Solution: you can get the 'plus package' with a 2 weeks trial period and then cancel without problem. Which I just did. Hope I don't forget to cancel after 12 or 13 days!

[Cheib]

So here's a question....how do these cars compare to the modern WRC cars ? Are modern WRC cars because of improvements in tyre, drivetrain technology etc a match for them ?

How do stage times compare does anyone know ?

Just crazy looking at the crowd control or rather lack of it.....utter madness.

[Yachtworker]

vincegail said:

Thank you for the tip!

Problem: I only have BBC1 and 2 in Belgium, and BBC3 and 4 are in the 'plus package'.

Solution: you can get the 'plus package' with a 2 weeks trial period and then cancel without problem. Which I just did. Hope I don't forget to cancel after 12 or 13 days!

I will give you another loophole if you like, if you have an iPad, download the filmOn Plus app and scroll down to Cbeebies as it swaps back to BBC 4 at 1900 UK time. Somehow you can watch Live UK tv even in mainland Europe.

[GarryA]

Over a stage a modern car would win.

Even the Group A cars where posting faster stage times after the death of Group B.