SILVERSTONE AT 75
The central theme of this year’s Festival is a celebration of 75 years of grand prix racing at Silverstone. It was back in October 1948 that the recently disused wartime airfield was pressed into service as Britain’s first major post-Second World War race track. A rudimentary course was set out on the old runways with straw bales and oil drums to mark the circuit and spectator protection was provided by a rope.
Throughout the Festival weekend, events and demonstrations will celebrate 75 years of Silverstone as the venue has evolved from a bleak airfield into a state-of-the-art circuit.
At the heart of the 75-year activities will be some high-speed demos for post-1966 GP cars. Each afternoon, these glorious machines will have a 15-minute demonstration session when Silverstone will echo to the sound of V8, V10 and V12 engines being put through their paces.
A tremendous line-up of cars has been brought together including two Leyton House Marches, along with Arrows and Tyrrells from the late 1980s and early 1990s, most of which are rarely seen on track.
