Wiliams documentary film
Discussion
coppice said:
To be fair, this was not a revelation but very well known at the time - but obviously is useful narrative for those younger than me , who first saw a Williams F1 car in 1972... FW is an easy man to admire , but much harder to like , frankly. As his late wife's book (which, shamefully , he hasn't even read) also highlighted , Frank was very adept at running fast and loose with creditors, ripping off buyers and so on - I know this sort of stuff isn't uncommon in the sport but I don't find it endearing .
Virginia's book 'a different kind of life' also has a lot of information about the crash and it's aftermath. She comes across as a bit lightweight but Frank as someone who takes self belief and ambition to extremes, not even deliberately selfish, just obsessed.coppice said:
Nothing I have ever read about Virginia suggests 'lightweight' ...She sounded formidable, if not universally likeable , judging by her book
Joe Saward's take on Virginia Williams, I don't think "lightweight" comes into it.https://joesaward.wordpress.com/2013/03/08/ginny-w...
Motor Sport magazine ran an article a few years ago that shed some light on just how ruthless Frank was in the early years.
I can't recall the exact year it occurred, probably 71 or 72, but during his first attempt to get into F1 (Frank Williams Racing Cars) the team ran a customer March chassis and shared a lock up with another small F1 team (who also ran a customer March). Frank's driver crashed the car and it was never the same again. The results got worse and faced with the collapse of his team, Frank and his mechanics stayed late one night after the other team had packed up and broke into the other garage, swapped the chassis over and rebuilt both cars. Come the next race the other team found themselves unable to compete with a car that just didn't feel right and soon folded.
Frank Williams Racing Cars soldiered on until 1976 when Frank sold a controlling stake to Walter Wolf. Frank left to team at the end of the year and set up Williams Grand Prix Engineering in 1977.
I can't recall the exact year it occurred, probably 71 or 72, but during his first attempt to get into F1 (Frank Williams Racing Cars) the team ran a customer March chassis and shared a lock up with another small F1 team (who also ran a customer March). Frank's driver crashed the car and it was never the same again. The results got worse and faced with the collapse of his team, Frank and his mechanics stayed late one night after the other team had packed up and broke into the other garage, swapped the chassis over and rebuilt both cars. Come the next race the other team found themselves unable to compete with a car that just didn't feel right and soon folded.
Frank Williams Racing Cars soldiered on until 1976 when Frank sold a controlling stake to Walter Wolf. Frank left to team at the end of the year and set up Williams Grand Prix Engineering in 1977.
ralphrj said:
Motor Sport magazine ran an article a few years ago that shed some light on just how ruthless Frank was in the early years.
I can't recall the exact year it occurred, probably 71 or 72, but during his first attempt to get into F1 (Frank Williams Racing Cars) the team ran a customer March chassis and shared a lock up with another small F1 team (who also ran a customer March). Frank's driver crashed the car and it was never the same again. The results got worse and faced with the collapse of his team, Frank and his mechanics stayed late one night after the other team had packed up and broke into the other garage, swapped the chassis over and rebuilt both cars. Come the next race the other team found themselves unable to compete with a car that just didn't feel right and soon folded.
Frank Williams Racing Cars soldiered on until 1976 when Frank sold a controlling stake to Walter Wolf. Frank left to team at the end of the year and set up Williams Grand Prix Engineering in 1977.
As someone who builds that era of F1 cars for a living, that story is complete bI can't recall the exact year it occurred, probably 71 or 72, but during his first attempt to get into F1 (Frank Williams Racing Cars) the team ran a customer March chassis and shared a lock up with another small F1 team (who also ran a customer March). Frank's driver crashed the car and it was never the same again. The results got worse and faced with the collapse of his team, Frank and his mechanics stayed late one night after the other team had packed up and broke into the other garage, swapped the chassis over and rebuilt both cars. Come the next race the other team found themselves unable to compete with a car that just didn't feel right and soon folded.
Frank Williams Racing Cars soldiered on until 1976 when Frank sold a controlling stake to Walter Wolf. Frank left to team at the end of the year and set up Williams Grand Prix Engineering in 1977.
ks.I have also rebuilt the last frank Williams racing car, FW05 (which was a Hesketh 308c with some mods) and the first Williams grand prix engineering car, (which was a March 761 with some mods)
Bonefish Blues said:
Not an impression I took away from the film, either. The openly expressed bitterness from one sibling to another surprised and disappointed in equal measure. A fascinating watch.
I chatted with someone earlier who was in the documentary. He recalled once having to lift a very young Jonny off Claire as he had his knee on her throat and she had turned blue. The bitterness goes to the core of them, I suppose, and they’re probably better off keeping away from each other. Been there with my brother, everyone is happier without the arguments.
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