RACING IN THE DARK

Following the critically acclaimed High Performance, which revealed the long and troubled history of Britain’s automotive passion, this could very easily have been a tricky second album. But writer and former TV producer Grimsdale has nailed it once again, this time charting the early story of Bentley and its pursuit of Le Mans glory.

There are certainly parallels between the two books, not least the excellent cover design but also the engagingly readable prose that makes for a genuine page-turner. It is another that is so easily consumable that the back cover quickly rears into view, like the recent Richard Williams biography of Stirling Moss (Book of the month, June). And, like Williams’ tome, this too has its roots in the school assignment of a young future author.

The story of WO and his band of ‘Bentley Boys’ is not an easy or straightforward subject to concisely chart, it must be said. But such is the research here, and so well crafted is the story, that this threads every facet together brilliantly.

The book begins with a study of young WO, the precocious engineer of means. Yet more time is spent on his obsessive, classless passion for machinery that sent him on to the railways and later into a key role in the war in the skies. His friendship with Sydney Charles Houghton ‘Sammy’ Davis is one of many sister plots, the pair having torn around north London getting a taste for speed and power.

Other key characters are introduced regularly, all chasing the adrenalin rushes they encountered in the First World War, with a stronger spotlight beaming down on some such as drivers Davis, Bertie Kensington-moir and the fascinating Dr Dudley Benjafield, but also on the small group behind the scenes that worked so tirelessly and faithfully for the ever-ailing firm. Leslie Pennal, the apprentice who made such a mark, and Arthur Hillstead are leading players, and names such as Wally Hassan dot in and out. It is comprehensive without being overbearing, aided by Grimsdale’s crisp writing style.

The enigma of Woolf Barnato (far left, on right) is wonderfully explored, a playboy who balanced living life with diligence when required. His composed victory drive at Le Mans being a case in point.

The French classic is a sort of long, enthralling crescendo to Racing in the dark. What comes before builds the scene and fevered expectation, saving space for the remarkable Mrs Victor Bruce and her 24-hour record plus much more besides. Meanwhile the many memoirs of those involved have been absorbed and provide first-person accounts, revealing Le Mans a century ago.

Robert Benjafield, Dudley’s grandson, helped Grimsdale with unseen writings and was ‘a wise advisor in the pitfalls of excessive nostalgia,’ as the author wonderfully describes. The result is unmissable for anyone with a passing interest in the birth of Bentley and of Le Mans. JP

£20 Peter Grimsdale, Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781471198267

‘A spotlight beams down on drivers Davis and the fascinating Dr Dudley Benjafield, but also on the small group behind the scenes that worked so tirelessly and faithfully for the firm’