Festival fans feted with live streaming  Words and images by Peter Baker. Click to view Gallery. 

Opened way back in 1931, the rolling expanse of Donington Park is as close as it gets to having Spa-Francorchamps right here in our own back yard. And make no mistake, the National Circuit at 1.979 miles may be shorter, but it’s just as fast, and with one after the other gradient and camber changes, it’s also fiendishly complicated. Hence, the huge gravel traps, multitudinous safety vehicles and marshal posts seemingly every few yards.

Celebrating 10 years of the Historic Festival in 2021, main mover Duncan Wiltshire, typically boyish, old school and Bentley racer, plays down the Covid-19 restrictions: "I was determined, if possible, to go ahead. And I’d like to thank MSV, who owns the circuit, main sponsor DK Engineering, the army of volunteers and, of course, the 250-odd drivers who provide the ultimate in motorsport entertainment. Without any of these people, there would be no Historic Festival. So, thanks again."

The packed weekend held behind closed doors, but live-streamed, enjoyed mostly dry weather, and featured 11 well-supported races, six on Saturday and five, including the three-hour RAC Pall Mall Cup endurance race for pre-66 GT, Sports Racing, and Touring Cars, on Sunday.

Saturday. What better way to start than with a one-hour Jaguar Challenge race? Thirty-two cars qualified, all E-types except for the Nick Whale Mk2 and the single XK 120 shared by Chris Keith-Lucas and Kerry Wilson. Mark Donner started from pole but the entire race belonged to Gary Pearson. Eight cars retired including, sadly, the XK 120, but the Mk2 finished 21st, albeit six laps behind the leader.

A frenetic round one, 20-minute battle between 23 pre-66 Historic Grand Prix Cars, was won with consummate ease by Will Nuthall. And followed by another 20-minute outing, this time for those taking part in the FJHRA/HSCC ‘Silverline’ Formula Junior Championship (1958-1960). Ray Mallock (U2 Mk2) lined up first on the 21-car grid, but lost by less than a second to the Terrier T4 Series 1 of Chris Drake. Chris also put in a fastest lap of 87.82mph, some going. Only one car failed to finish.

Fourth race of Saturday, the RAC Woodcote Trophy and Stirling Moss Trophy, scheduled to run for one hour, attracted a full field, with 33 cars eventually qualifying, led by the extremely fast James Cottingham/Oliver Bryant Tojeiro Ecosse Jaguar. The pair went on to win at an average speed of 90.70mph. John Spiers and Tiff Needell (Lister Jaguar ‘Knobbly’) pushed hard, but had to settle for second place. Seven Listers finished in the top 10.

During qualifying for the 20-minute FJHRA/HSCC ‘Silverline Formula Junior (1961-1963) Championship race, a sudden and localised hailstorm between Starkey’s Bridge and McLeans caused havoc with Chris Chilcott, Stephan Joebstl, Anna Wilson and Andrew Turvey falling victim. Nevertheless, all made the start. It was a very close race all the way to the flag with Sam Wilson beating Richard Bradley into second place by a mere 0.003 seconds, the width of a cigarette paper. Andrew Hibberd was only a further 0.230 seconds behind in third.

Winding up Saturday, the one-hour Ford GT40 battle for the Amon Cup. Just 11 cars qualified, led by Oliver Bryant, but this was a race about quality, not quantity. And with pit stops and driver changes, anything could happen, which it did! Bryant retired at half distance, while the once leading Cottingham/Smith car suffered door closing problems, handing victory to Gordon Shedden and Miles Griffiths. Only seven cars made the distance. One of Chris Amon’s twin sons, James, handed Miles the trophy while Gordon, notable by his absence, was long gone, on his way back to Scotland.

Sunday. Clear skies with plenty of sunshine, and a ground temperature of around 14 degrees by midday. Just right.

Anyone expecting a late start or church break was to be disappointed as, at exactly 09:00 all 28 cars taking part in the 40- minute Mad Jack race for pre-war cars were lined up and ready to go qualifying. Nine Bentleys towered above the field, dwarfing the likes of Sue Darbyshire and Simon Edwards in their three-wheeler Morgans, but it was the indecently quick 1921 GN Parker, shared by the father-and-son team of Justin and Ben Maeers that set fasted time, and in the race itself, the car romped off into a lead it wouldn’t lose. Rudiger/Friedrichs (Alvis Firefly) finished second, with the Wakeman/Blakeney-Edwards Frazer-Nash TT Replica Supersport in third, under three seconds adrift. ‘Boss’ man Duncan Wiltshire cruised home in 15th position, while eight cars retired, including the much fancied and well-known Talbot AV105 of Gareth Burnett.

Before lunch there was also another 20- minute round of the FJHRA/HSCC  ‘Silverline’ Formula Junior Championship where, of the 27 starters, it was Richard Bradley and his ultra-rapid Brabham BT2 that proved invincible, winning by a colossal 46.1 seconds from Richard Wilson (Brabham BT6).

Next race up, the one-hour Historic Touring Car Challenge (including U2TC, STCC and cars taking part in the Tony Dron Trophy). Complicated, maybe, but with a mixed field of 35 all-time favourites, think Mini, Lotus Cortina, BMW Lightweight, Rover 3500 and BMW E30 M3, plus the odd Capri, driven Tiff Needell, Chevy Camaro and Nissan Skyline, and I think you get the picture. Sixty minutes of mayhem. In the end nearly half the field either blew up or crashed out, leaving Andy Middlehurst to cross the line first in his peppermint green Nissan. Team Retro-Speed member Ken Clarke (Rover Vitesse) finished a fine 12th overall.

Somehow the organisers squeezed in another 20-minute round of the Historic Grand Prix Cars Association Championship, won again by Will Nuthall, before the pits were cleared and everybody got themselves into gear, ready for the ‘big’ one, the three-hour RAC Pall Mall Cup for pre-66 GT, Sports Racing and Touring Cars that was to climax, and close the meeting.

Fifty cars lined up on the grid with the aggressive Roy Alderslade/Andrew Jordan Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupe on pole, but only 0.14 seconds ahead of the tiny Lotus XV shared by Roger Wills and Tim Harvey. That’s two ex-professional British Touring Car Champions in the top two places. Serious racing, or what? Further down the field, Team Retro-Speed was represented by Jeremy Cooke (Mustang) and Peter Mallet (MGB).

When the lights went out it was just like old times, lots of noise, and fifty cars leaving behind a solid cloud of burnt rubber as they headed as one, towards the first corner, in this case, Redgate. Lots of very heavy braking, some contact, then onward. Recorded times of 1:19.595 meant the leaders were threatening 90mph-laps.

Then on lap six somebody dropped a long quarter-mile line of oil. Result. Mayhem, red flags and a lot of damaged cars, including the leading Daytona that clouted the bank at Old Hairpin. Somehow, before the flags stopped waving, it was back in the race.

But three hours is a long time in historic motorsport and, as the minutes ticked by, smirking Elan drivers started overtaking failing Jaguars, and the likes of Jeremy Welch (Austin Healey 3000) and Gary Pearson (Jaguar C-type) hovered in waiting, just outside the top 10. But in the end, nobody was going to catch the Wills/Harvey Lotus, not even the hard-charging and, sadly disfigured, Daytona Coupe, and they crossed the finish line ahead by well over a minute. Forty-seven cars were classified, Jeremy Cooke won his class and Peter Mallett stroked the MGB home to a satisfying 33rd overall. Well done chaps.


I’m told live streaming of the event was first class. those at home, feet up with a beer in each hand, missing nothing of the action. Having personally survived the two days on nothing but bread and water, I suddenly felt very jealous.