The Killer Years (BBC Program)

[mk1]

OK, its not strictly Mini but for anyone who didn't see "The Killer Years" on BBC 4 last night you missed on of the most illuminating & moving documentaries I have ever seen about the classic period of Grand Prix racing.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00z8v18

A highly recommended watch, but some of it isn't very easy!

[steve1071]

It was a cracking documentary as you say Mark, though a bit harrowing in places. The footage of David Purley near the end was unbelievable.

[mk1]

The footage of David Purley near the end was unbelievable.

That's the footage I couldn't get out of my mind last night!

It does however make you realise how much things have moved on.

[Pete]

Still shocks me now to see Purley trying to rescue Williamson all those years ago, very uncomfortable viewing.

On the upside I didn't realise Scheckter drove a Mini !

Did anyone else fall asleep watching the Oz GP yesterday ?

[sclemow]

One of the best documentaries that I have seen for a long time. As well as the David Purley footage, which was without doubt shocking and moving, I had never realised that it was Graham Hill that pulled Jackie Stewart out or that he ended up having to deal with the wreckage of Jim Clark F2 crash .
As you say it shows how far things have moved on. These races were before I was born, however, seeing the cars out and about now makes it easy to romanticise about an era of gentlemen racing where the cars slide around and overtaking was possible, some of the conditions they were sent out in were downright brutal!

[NotNormal]

Was indeed a really good bit of TV viewing (despite the subject matter). Its unfortunate that it took this sort of tradgedy to get us to where we are today in regards to safety.

Also goes to show the pure passion these people had for driving in order to commit to the track and the corners despite the obvious death and destruction that could await them in an instant.

Nice bit of TV last night (for a change) which also included the 60 year documentary that was shown before it.

[mk1]

I feel that the way drivers back then were prepared to accept the risks of the sport has a lot to do with the fact that in the 50's & early 60's most of the drivers, whatever country they came from, had lived through & probably fought in WW2. As a consequence they had "grown up" simply accepting that their mates could be killed at any moment.

It took the likes of Jackie Stewart who was only 5 when the war finished to point out the absolute madness of these "accepted" risks.

It of course took a few years and many deaths to force the "powers that be" & the money men to realise that this was no longer an acceptable way to behave.

[surfblue63]

It was a good view, and I was surprised at some of the images that they actually showed, in particular the Bandini image at Monaco and the scenes from Monza in 1961.
Some of the stories seam unbelivable, like the ambulance getting lost and not knowing the way to the hospital.
Motorsport has come a long way since then, it's a pity that the racing has become very dull, the drivers unreachable and the tactics less than sporting.
If only we could have the attitude and sporting behaviour of racing from the past with the safety and organisation of today.

[almondgreen]

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[guru_1071]

the saddest thing about Bandini was that the tv helicopter hovering above his burning car faned the flames so much that the marshalls couldnt put it out. the poor guy literally burnt to death for the amusement of the public. - they had almost got the fIre out when the helicopter arrived and gave the small fire the huge rush of air it needed.

he (in my eyes) was one of the great 1960's f1 drivers - ive got a great photo somewhere of him taken seconds before he crashed - right at the point where he was living life to the full

[Chris64]

Here is the link to the other BBC4 programme - 60 years of F1 - http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0 ... Ca_Change/

I watched this one today and thoroughly enjoyed it, will watch the Killer Years tomorrow.

Congrats to the BBC for producing these excellent documentaries - it's just a shame I hadn't seen them publicised at all so I nearly missed them until I saw a post on Pistonheads.

[mark7]

A very moving programme indeed just a shame there was not enough time for the many other sad stories.
Swiss F1 driver Jo Siffert died sadly in '71 in a non championship race at Brands when his BRM caught fire and none of the fire extinguishers nearby worked, made even worse by his only injury was a broken ankle.
Very dangerous times with Jackie Stewart saying you had a 1 in 3 chance of dying in race.

Mark.

[JC T ONE]

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Ditto

[JC T ONE]

Here is one of the efforts that was made (1969) to change, all the tragic fatal accidents.

The Pininfarina/Ferrari Sigma prototype, of a safer F1 car.

[Brynmor]

Must be honest didn't really see or learn alot from either programme although both had their merits.Programme 1 could have been really upbeat but voiceover guy killed it along with the drab music.

The Killer Years, couldn't understand the piece at the end '1976 no drivers were killed'...yes great, however 1977 Tom Pryce was then several more in the years after...it cut back the deaths but didn't eradicate them.
The Purley scenes have been on youtube for a while now and indeed Williamson was alive for a lot of that time the car was going up, terrible terrible travesty..

Most interesting for me was the Nina Rindt interview, a moving piece seen from the other foot so to speak....

[Tim]

not available in your area...

Ditto

Spoof your proxy setting and you should be able to watch it, how-to in this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1186&p=8226&hilit=proxy#p8226

Tim

[mab01uk]

On the upside I didn't realise Scheckter drove a Mini !

Jody Scheckter appeared on the Mini Se7en stand during the 1999 Mini 7 Race car prize build organised by my late brother at the Mini 40th Silverstone. Scheckter was interviewed by Mike Standring of Wood & Pickett, see pdf below:
http://www.mini7.co.uk/downloads/featur ... eature.pdf

[1071bob]

My first ever motor race back in the last sixties featured Roger Williamson winning at Castle Combe in a one litre Anglia, and I followed his career until his tragic death. I remember seeing that footage all those years ago and seeing it again you can't believe the race just carried on. . Another driver to die due to inadequate marshalling was Elio de Angelis testing at Paul Ricard.

[Pandora]

'The killer years' was a good documentary as far as it went, and probably entertained the general public, but it was sensasionalist and contained an awful lot of careless errors - use of incorrect footage, factual inacuracies such as suggesting Jim Clark was thrown 15 feet up a tree when infact he died in the car, bit of which went up the trees. (not that it really matters, but these things have a habit of becoming 'the truth')

It also seemed to suggest that racing was safe when the cars were front engined, and again after '76 - certainly not true in either case!

Colin Chapman didn't come out of it very well did he? Nina Rindt certainly has good cause to hole her views though, so don't suppose that's a shock to hear.

It's a shame HSE can't afford to have Jackie Stewart talk at one of our events - I recon he would give a very sensible and interesting view on 'risk management'. I did suggest it, but the high heid yins didn't seem to see the appeal......

[sandman]

For those not getting 'the Beep' - youtube to the rescue:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy7gmd8X ... ture=feedu