Le Mans in frame
Celebrate a centenary of endurance racing’s finest with our great selection of memorabilia. Visit the Motor Sport shop at motorsportmagazine.com/shop to view the full range
Le Mans 1966 Poster
The story is the stuff of legend, and Hollywood, and we love this classy reimagining from Automobilist. Ever the producer of jaw-dropping wall-hangers, this officially licensed design features the 7-litre no2 Ford GT40 MKII that won Le Mans in 1966… a result that has caused controversy ever since. We all know Ken Miles and Denny Hulme deserved to have won, but for a Ford team order to slow up for a formation finish, only for the Bruce McLaren/Chris Amon car running right behind to sprint ahead and be declared the winner even though it had been four laps behind before the ‘close up’ command. Pah, whatever. This shows the winning car speeding through the dust, the way it should be remembered.
£56
Jack Brabham signed model
It’s arguable that, amongst the pantheon of F1 greats, not enough gets said about Jack Brabham. The pioneering Aussie was already a two-time world champion with Cooper when he decided to try to win a title driving a car of his own creation. He achieved it in 1966, with four wins aboard his Brabham-Repco. This set features a 1:18 scale model of the Brabham BT20 used in 1966-67, with the signature of Brabham himself on the lid inlay.
£249.95
“Joined Up Writing This Time Please!” Book
You may know of Martin Tomlinson for his fantastic racing artworks, but inspired by his childhood autograph book he’s also penned this book celebrating his own heroes. His scribble collection covered most of the stars of the 1930s-60s, including nine world champions. Many scans of the autographs make it into this 74-page book, and are accompanied by his artworks, photographs and stories.
£25
Le Mans Panoramic
In the mood to just stare lovingly at some fantastic Le Mans 24 Hours imagery? Grab this and delve into its wonderful 60cm-wide pages – almost two feet! It focuses on the height of the Audi vs Peugeot diesel wars. Reinforce your coffee table!
£35
Steve McQueen Le Mans Press Book
An original 1970s press book produced by the Heuer watch company and distributed in Japan to coincide with the launch of Le Mans. Its 24 pages are adorned with stills and artwork, plus a superb centre fold-out. It’s all in Japanese, but Google translate can work wonders.
£95
About the Motor Sport shop
With hundreds of special and unique racing-themed products, and many new items regularly added, the Motor Sport shop is aimed at both serious and casual collectors with a wide range of prices to suit your budget. Visit motorsportmagazine.com/shop
The expert view
Modelling degrees
We all love a good model, but we often love a bad one too. Some brands are guilty of getting it wrong in a big way, while others raise their game to produce something extra special.
Let’s start with the ones that got it really right. Hotwheels (wait, don’t turn the page!) yes, it’s a toy brand, but it and parent firm Mattel do occasionally produce a gem. About 10 years ago it released a 1:18-scale version of Stirling Moss’ Ferrari 250GT SWB, and it was incredible value. For £100 you got a beautiful model in a lovely box that was 99% accurate. Now they’ve become very scarce, often changing hands for around £300… even more if they’ve been signed.
Then there’s the Minichamps’ ‘Taxi for Senna’ featuring Nigel Mansell’s 1991 Williams FW14 from the British GP, with the famed Brazilian perched on the side. These are hugely collectible, but weren’t perfect. They damage easily, Senna’s arms and legs are delicate, it never came with the Camel decals so if a model has them they’ll be an aftermarket kit and you need to make sure they’re the correct colour and design. Plus, Senna’s red race suit tended to stain the white sidepod. But regardless, it’s still a lovely thing that will set you back upwards of £500 if signed.
And some just get it wrong. There’s a famous case of a high-end model maker releasing a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR ‘722’ that won the 1955 Mille Miglia with Moss and this title’s own Denis Jenkinson. When designing the model, the company visited the Mercedes museum and snapped the car as is, not realising that Moss always drove with his own three-spoke steering wheel, which he kept. So, when the model came out it had an incorrect four-spoke steering wheell! Regardless, the rest of the model is lovely, and the fact it has that story behind it makes it quite endearing.
Andrew Francis is director at The Signature Store, thesignaturestore.co.uk