DOWN THE WORKSHOP
1934 BARNATO HASSAN
It was a Brooklands special
This remarkable car was originally built as a special project for racing at Brooklands combining the knowledge and enthusiasm of Woolf Barnato and Wally Hassan. It first appeared as a 6½ litre Bentley engine on a short chassis, covered in a narrow singleseater body. Its first race, driven by Dudley Froy, was the BRDC 500 Miles race at Brooklands Circuit in September 1934.
It set a Brooklands record
By August 1935 it was fitted with an eight-litre Bentley engine and, like the cars of the time that raced on the outer circuit at Brooklands, it did not have front-wheel brakes. In August 1935 it broke the outer circuit Brooklands lap speed record with Oliver Bertram at the wheel, recording an average speed of 142.60mph. This was done with a car engine and was only ever bettered by the aero-engined Napier Railton.
It became a road car
After war broke out in 1939, the Barnato Hassan was put into storage and in 1947, the car was bought by Ian Metcalfe, who wanted to use it on the road. It was fitted with a twoseater body and registered as MPE 10. However, Metcalfe also raced it at Spa and Montlhery. The Montlhery event in September 12 nearly ended in disaster as a broken half shaft left Metcalfe pinned underneath after it rolled. Fortunately the driver and the car were not badly damaged.
Keith Schellenberg raced it
Through the early 1950s, Gerry Crozier and Tommy Atkins owned it before Keith Schellenberg and Norman Barclay bought the car jointly later in 1953. Reportedly, they were testing the car at Oulton Park when after just one lap Norman jumped out and said that driving it further would result in his death and therefore he wanted Keith to pay him out for the other half of the car as soon as possible.
It has recently been restored
For almost half a century the intrepid Schellenberg campaigned the car in races and speed events, latterly including the Goodwood Festival of Speed. During 1960, the car was rebodied to the style of its early life. The present custodian,
Jorg Lemberg, took the car to the Goodwood Revival in 2007 after buying it in the April of that year. He has since spent much time and care on the rebuild of this unique and famous piece of motor racing history.