BULGIN, The very best of Russell Bulgin, 1958-2002

[Stick Legs]

I thought that 'Yesterday's Heroes' would be an appropriate place to put this.

I have been looking for a copy of this book but am staggered by the price it goes for. A tribute to the quality of his journalism and his tragic early death.

Having quite a few of his articles anyway in old car magazines I wondered if someone who does have the book would awfully mind listing the articles, as then I could complete my magazine collection to reflect the book's contents.

If anyone could help that would be most appreciated.

Thank you.

[crankshaft]

I have this book. When (if!) I can find it I’ll post up a list of articles.

I seem to remember there’s some stuff that won’t be in magazines, like emails from when he was fighting cancer.

[V12 Migaloo]

Russel was a great writer, use to love my monthly Car mag deliveries, reading his, LJK Setright, George Bishop, Ronald Baker stories, all of them great scribes

[Stick Legs]

crankshaft said:

I have this book. When (if!) I can find it I’ll post up a list of articles.

I seem to remember there’s some stuff that won’t be in magazines, like emails from when he was fighting cancer.

Thank you, that's great.
I can live without the emails. I think they may be great insight into the mind of the man and probably are quite poignant bit could be a bit mawkish. If you know what I mean.


It will be quite sufficient for me to have a collection of magazines in a magazine file simply marked 'Bulgin' on my book shelf.

I some how suspect he would have liked it that way.

[aeropilot]

Some 31 years ago, I spent an enjoyable day with Russell, when he drove my car for an article he did on it for the old Supercar Classic mag.

Very sad he was taken far too young.

[LankyMcTally]

It's been a long time since I've looked at this book and with a few minutes to kill I thought I'd dig it out and skim through the contents myself. I'll get reading again over the weekend...

The book is split into 4 sections as follows:

01: The Early Years

Staying Alive - Car & Car Conversions - March 1980
Race Relations - Car & Car Conversions - April 1980
A Star Is Born - Motor - 27 April1985
Screwing In Together - Or Screwing It Up - Motor - 23 July 1983
Running Report - Motor 1 - September 1984
Welsh Rarebit - Car & Car Conversions - November 1986

02: The Car Years

Grey Shoes - Car - June 1991
Renault 4 - Car - March 1994
Granddad - Car - July 1991
Stephen Bayley - Car - June 1989
Hubcaps - Car - January 1990
Astra Van - Car - January 1990
F1 Hair - Car - November 1993

911 - Thanks But No Thanks - Car - July 1989
In Search Of An Icon - Car - September 1989
Nigel Mansel - Car - July 1991
Rain Stopped Play - Car - January 1991
Off His Trolley - Car - March 1991
Ayrton Senna - Car - September 1990
The King & I - Car - April 1992
Chelsea Cruise - Car - November 1991

03: The Autocar Years

Bobble Hats - Autocar - 17 April 1996
Motorway - Autocar - 10 July 1996
Fast Names - Autocar - 22 February 1995
German Cars - Autocar - 28 February 1996
F1 on ITV - Autocar - 24 January 1996
Ka Launch - Autocar - 25 September 1996
Stewart - Autocar - 24 April 1996

The World's Best GT - Autocar - 13 December 1995
'In A Word? Brilliant!" - Autocar - 10 April 1996
Obituary - Porsche 968 - Autocar - 31 January 1996
Le Mac At Le Mans - Autocar - 21 June 1995
Tokyo Show - Autocar - 8 November 1995
Remember Him This Way - Autocar - 5 May 1995
Boyds Own Hero - Autocar - 24 January 1996
Full Frontal Assault - Autocar - 24 July 1996
Brash American Tourist - Autocar - 26 June 1996

04: The Later Years

Moment-Ous - Rally XS - February/March 2001
Why Two Wheels? - The Daily Telegraph - 10 February 1996
Confessions of An Addict - Autoweek - 8 October 2001

10 Things To Do In Britain - Car Graphic - October 2001
JYS - Motor Sport - April 2000
Gone But Not Forgotten - Daily Telegraph - 14 December 1996

A compilation of some of Russell's electronic thoughts during his illness.

[LankyMcTally]

aeropilot said:

Some 31 years ago, I spent an enjoyable day with Russell, when he drove my car for an article he did on it for the old Supercar Classic mag.

Very sad he was taken far too young.

What an experience for you. As you say, taken too young. I do not think he would have much truck with some of what passes for motoring journalism these days.

[Duke Caboom]

£650 on ebay - that can't be right, can it?

Is that just someone chancing their arm?

[Stick Legs]

Duke Caboom said:

£650 on ebay - that can't be right, can it?

Is that just someone chancing their arm?

That's what prompted me to post this thread.

Given the proceeds of the original book went to charity I can only assume the profit from this sale go to the Royal Marsden as well...

[MickyveloceClassic]

Bulgin said this of the R129 SL back in 1994:

“A Mercedes Benz SL is a reassuringly costly way of saying F@@@ you to the whole leering gawping awful tawdry world.

Men who drive SL Mercs possess large penises. (How do I know this? I just do. You do too). Women who drive them have big sunglasses, geometrically optimised ovoid bottoms and endless cleavages. SL owners have personal equity. SL owners don’t like us much.”

As an SL owner, it’s clearly steeped in truth, but typical of the man’s humour and insight.

Such a great journalist.

[Sebring440]

Stick Legs said:

I can only assume the profit from this sale go to the Royal Marsden as well...

Wow.

[Mezzanine]

Duke Caboom said:

£650 on ebay - that can't be right, can it?

Is that just someone chancing their arm?

It’s regularly up for high prices.

I have seen £1000+ asking price before.

I wish they would reprint it and give others another chance to donate some money to the charity rather than just into someone’s pocket.

[Stick Legs]

Sebring440 said:

Wow.

Ok. Maybe a donation from the profits. 10% would be in order IMHO.

But as another poster said a reprint with profits to the RM would be most appreciated.

[DFLR]

I'll always remember his interview with Senna a few weeks before his crash.

So poignant.

[coppice]

I have a copy which I ordered as soon as it was announced . I regard him as on of the very best car journalists of all - with Setright (Marmite , I know, but I love his prose ) and the almost unknown ( in the UK ) David E Davis. Each had a unique and beguiling style, and were often extremely funny.

What most distinguished Bulgin's prose was the fact that he was so deeply in tune with popular culture and his work would happily have fitted into The Face as well as it did in Motor, Autocar , Evo and CAR . And - bizarrely - the Daily Telegraph .

I still am annoyed that I didn't say hello to him when I realised who the improbably tall guy standing near me at a Donington GT race was ... I do know one of his former colleagues who speaks very affectionately of him . It is ironic that so many motoring journalists of much lesser ability than Bulgin are still trying to ape his style . with predictably dire consequences

[V12 Migaloo]

Wasn't Russel the one who called a car (cant remember which one) "about as flash a rat with a gold tooth" and I think also wrote that the original MR2 rode and handled better then this side of a Geyser Girl!

[P5BNij]

coppice said:

I have a copy which I ordered as soon as it was announced . I regard him as on of the very best car journalists of all - with Setright (Marmite , I know, but I love his prose ) and the almost unknown ( in the UK ) David E Davis. Each had a unique and beguiling style, and were often extremely funny.

What most distinguished Bulgin's prose was the fact that he was so deeply in tune with popular culture and his work would happily have fitted into The Face as well as it did in Motor, Autocar , Evo and CAR . And - bizarrely - the Daily Telegraph .

I still am annoyed that I didn't say hello to him when I realised who the improbably tall guy standing near me at a Donington GT race was ... I do know one of his former colleagues who speaks very affectionately of him . It is ironic that so many motoring journalists of much lesser ability than Bulgin are still trying to ape his style . with predictably dire consequences

The David E Davis of 'Road & Track' magazine that Jay Leno is always talking about...?

[Duke Caboom]

Mezzanine said:

It’s regularly up for high prices.

I have seen £1000+ asking price before

Better go and find my copy then. And put it somewhere safe! Or sell it.

[Mezzanine]

Duke Caboom said:

Mezzanine said:

It’s regularly up for high prices.

I have seen £1000+ asking price before

Better go and find my copy then. And put it somewhere safe! Or sell it.

I would!

Maybe get it named on the house insurance

[coppice]

P5BNij said:

The David E Davis of 'Road & Track' magazine that Jay Leno is always talking about...?

Yes indeed . Hunt down 'Thus Spake David E' , an anthology of his articles and I promise you won't be disappointed . One of my sidelines is writing motoring book reviews for the US website speedreaders.info. If you have a scan on there you can read my review , which has plenty of extracts from the book itself .

What isn't perhaps widely known here is just how hugely influential US magazines were on UK motor journalism, especially in the Sixties . UK titles were very establishment , very stuffy and conservative until CAR disrupted everything . It not only used US writers like Henry N Manney , Brock Yates and DE Davis but their style was hugely influential on CAR's own writers , especially Doug Blain , who was effectively its founding father. If you ever get the chance, get copies of a 1967 Autocar and the US mag Car and Driver from the same year - the difference was staggering