Episode 2

Overview

Formula One's archive series continues by charting how the oily rag pioneers of British motor racing emerged from the garages of rural England to take on the slick, Italian marques. A mixture of inspiration and perspiration led teams like Vanwall, Cooper and Lotus to dominate the sport for over a decade from the late 1950s onwards. Former mechanics Jack Brabham and Graham Hill became world champion drivers, John Cooper revolutionised the sport by moving the engine from front to back, and Colin Chapman, the genius of Lotus, created the aerodynamic racing shape we know today. All powered by a treat of a period soundtrack and some alarmingly pukka BBC voices.