Gordon Wilkins

Postage stamp for the 1939 Berlin Motor Show, where Gordon Wilkins was invited to present the VW Beetle

Gordon Wilkins (born October 6, 1912 in Liverpool , † April 11, 2007 ) was a British journalist and racing car driver .

journalist

Born and raised in Liverpool, Gordon Wilkins began his media work in the 1930s . Starting as a sales employee , he subsequently became a motorsport journalist and rose to become the publisher of the weekly newspaper The Motor in 1933 . Under his direction, photos and cartoons became an integral part of the magazine. His technical understanding, which he had acquired in a large number of courses, was known. His good contacts in Germany led to an invitation as the only British journalist to present the preliminary drafts of the VW Beetle by Adolf Hitler at the Berlin Motor Show in 1939 .

During the Second World War , Wilkins worked in the research department of the Bristol Airplane Company and from 1944 was involved in a vehicle project by Roy Fedden that was never realized . Wilkins would have been responsible for the design. After the end of the war, he became the editor of Autocar in 1947 .

From 1953 he worked as a freelance journalist and rose to become the doyen of British motorsport journalists. In the 1960s and 1970s he wrote for 27 magazines, journals and newspapers worldwide. For years he published the Daily Express Motor Show Guide and translated French and English motorsport books into English. He was the presenter of a TV program and lived with his wife in the south of France from 1992 until his death .

Racing career

Gordon Wilkins was active as a gentleman driver. The end of the 1930s he went mountain race and made his debut in 1939 at the 24-hour race at Le Mans . Together with Arthur Jones , Wilkins entered the race on a Singer Le Mans Replica and finished in eighteenth overall. In the 1950s he competed three more times at Le Mans, each time with the Frenchman Marcel Becquart as team partner. In 1951 and 1952 he achieved class victories. The best place outside of Le Mans was 19th place at the Silverstone International in 1951 .

statistics

Le Mans results

year	team	vehicle	Teammate	placement	Failure reason
1939	Arthur W. Jones	Singer Le Mans Replica	Arthur Jones	Rank 18
1951	Marcel Becquart	Jowett Jupiter R1	Marcel Becquart	Rank 21 and class win
1952	Marcel Becquart	Jowett Jupiter R1	Marcel Becquart	Rank 13 and class win
1953	Donald Healey Motor Company	Austin-Healey 100	Marcel Becquart	Rank 14

Individual results in the sports car world championship

season	team	race car	1	2	3	4th	5	6th	7th
1953	Donald Healey Motor Company	Austin-Healey 100	SEB	MIM	LEM	SPA	ONLY	RTT	CAP
					14th

Web links

• About Gordon Wilkins
• Gordon Wilkins at Racing Sports Cars
• Obituary in the Times

Individual evidence

1. ^ Silverstone International 1951