1937 International Imperial Trophy Race (lost footage of motor race; 1937)

BBC camera capturing footage of a Maserati 4CM and an Austin.

Status: Lost

On 9th October, 1937, the 1937 International Imperial Trophy Race commenced at the Crystal Palace. The race would decide not only who would win the Imperial Trophy Crystal Palace, but also decide the 1937 BRDC Gold Star winner between B Bira and Ray Mays. The event was ultimately won by Bira, thus allowing him to take both accolades. Additionally the event made history for being the first live televised motor race.

Background

Heading into the race, B Bira and Raymond Mays, who both drove ERAs, were in contention for the BRDC Gold Star. This award dates back to 1929, and is given to the BRDC member who earned the most points from results in international races in a given year, irrespective of the specialisms and locations. Bira had won the Campbell Trophy at Brooklands driving for Maserati, the RAC International Light Car Race on the Isle Of Man, and the 12 Hour Race at Donnington. Meanwhile, Mays had achieved firsts in the Sheslsey Welsh Hill Climb, the Grand Prix of Picardy, Empire Trophy Race, Albi Grand Prix, and the J.C.C. International Trophy race, all for ERA, for which he had a hand in developing ERA and later BRM in Formula One.

Meanwhile, the BBC were looking to televise various sports for its new Television Service. Not much is known surrounding the circumstances concerning televising the race, but according to Issue 731 of Radio Times, it was by courtesy of the Road Racing Club. Thus, BBC cameras are known to have been present at the Crystal Palace, with expectations that they would capture footage throughout the day according to the issue. Kolumbus claims that by televising the race, the BBC had achieved "the first ever live TV outside broadcast of motor sport".

The Event

The prelude to the 1937 International Imperial Trophy race included two heats, and would be raced as a handicap event, whereby slower cars would be allowed to start earlier than the quickest machines. For the event, the competing Austins, MGs, and the MG-Riley would have a 50 second advantage over all other competitors. They would be followed by the 1.5 litre Maseratis and ERAs, who would have a 10 second advantage over the 3-litre Maserati. In the first heat, Percy Maclure won in his MG-Riley, ahead of Arthur Dobson's ERA. In the second heat, Count Piero Trossi's Maserati came home first, ahead of the ERAs of Charlie Martin and Bira.

Those present at the Crystal Palace were also treated to some demonstration laps by Dick Seaman in the Mercedes-Benz W125, which bridged the gap between the second heat and the final race. With times averaging in the 2:04 range, the laps were acclaimed by the spectators thanks to the speed and noise from the Mercedes. After the demonstration laps were complete, the final race would begin, consisting of 15 laps where the winner would receive £150, more than £10,400 in 2020. Mays ultimately proved an non-starter, giving Bira the chance to win both accolades. He ultimately did so, beating Dobson by half a a car length, although the latter did win the Jarvis Trophy thanks to posting the fastest lap. Bira won the BRDC Gold Star with 73 points, edging out Mays by three points.

Following his demonstration laps, Seaman was directed to go to the BBC television van's roof, where whoever won the final race would be directed there and be introduced by Seaman to the television viewers. This did not go according to plan however, as Bira was swamped by the Crystal Palace crowd, and Seaman was forced to make an impromptu motor racing speech. With Bira unable to attend, Seaman was informed that he would be taken back to the BBC studio, for which Seaman responded loudly "thank God for that!", which was heard by television viewers.

Availability

Like all early BBC television programs, coverage of the 1937 International Imperial Trophy Race was broadcast live and was not directly recorded, as there were no means of achieving this prior to the end of the Second World War. Thus, all televised footage of this motor race is now permanently missing. No newsreel footage is known to exist either, although some photos of the event survive to the present day.

Gallery

Images

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  Radio Times issue listing the event.

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  Surviving photo of the race.

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  Bira celebrating his win.

See Also

Early BBC Sports Television

• 1931 Epsom Derby (lost televised footage of horse racing event; 1931)
• 1937 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1937)
• 1937 Wimbledon Championships (partially found footage of tennis tournament; 1937)
• 1938 Ashes Series (partially found footage of international test cricket match; 1938)
• 1938 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1938)
• 1939 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1939)
• 1947 FA Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1947)
• 1953 British Grand Prix (partially found footage of Formula One race; 1953)
• 1955 Scottish Cup Final (partially found footage of football match; 1955)
• Archery (lost early televised toxophily; 1937-1938)
• Arsenal 7-1 Hibernian (lost footage of charity football match; 1952)
• Arsenal vs Arsenal Reserves (lost footage of early BBC televised football match; 1937)
• Barnet 3-2 Wealdstone (lost footage of Athenian League football match; 1946)
• The Boat Race 1938 (partially found footage of rowing race; 1938)
• Catch-As-Catch-Can Wrestling (lost early BBC televised professional wrestling matches; 1938-1939; 1946-1947)
• Charlton Athletic 1-0 Blackburn Rovers (lost footage of FA Cup match; 1947)
• Darts and Shove Ha'penny (lost early BBC televised darts matches; 1936-1939)
• England 0-1 Scotland (partially found international football match; 1938)
• England 1-1 Scotland (partially found footage of international football match; 1947)
• England 16-21 Scotland (partially found footage of rugby match; 1938)
• England 3-0 France (partially found footage of international football match; 1947)
• England 3-0 Rest of Europe (partially found footage of international football match; 1938)
• Falkirk 3-2 Newcastle United (lost footage of football match; 1953)
• Horace Lindrum vs Willie Smith (lost footage of televised snooker; 1937)
• Scottish Universities 1-1 English Universities (lost footage of international football match; 1952)
• Woods and Jack (lost early televised lawn bowls; 1937; 1946)

Early BBC Television

• Alexandra Palace's wartime television demonstrations (lost footage of private television transmissions; 1943, 1945)
• An Inspector Calls (lost television adaptation of play; 1948)
• Ann and Harold (lost early BBC drama television series; 1938)
• BBC Election Night (lost coverage of British general elections; 1950-1951)
• The Care of Your Car (lost early BBC motoring show; 1947)
• Cook's Night Out (lost early BBC cooking show; 1937)
• Craftsmen at Work (lost early BBC documentary show; 1938, 1946)
• Dish of the Month (lost early BBC cooking show; 1937)
• First Aid (lost early BBC medical show; 1937)
• Foundations of Cookery (lost early BBC cooking show; 1939)
• Marcel Boulestin television shorts (lost early BBC programs; 1937-1939)
• Masks through the Ages (lost early BBC history talk show; 1937)
• Opening of the BBC Television Service (partially found coverage of inaugural day of high-definition television service; 1936)
• The Orchestra and its Instruments (lost early BBC music talk show; 1937)
• RCA recording of BBC Television Service (found footage of pre-Second World War BBC television broadcast; 1938)
• Sea Stories (lost early BBC talk show; 1936-1937)
• Spelling Bee (lost early BBC game show; 1938)
• Telecrime (lost early BBC crime drama; 1938-1939; 1946)
• The Wasp's Nest (lost early BBC television adaptation of Agatha Christie short story; 1937)
• Weaponless Self-Defence (lost early ju-jitsu television program; 1936-1937)
• The World of Women (lost early BBC talk show; 1937)

Early Sports Television Media

• 1934 Philo T. Farnsworth broadcasts (lost early television demonstrations; 1934)
• 1936 Summer Olympics (lost television coverage of Berlin Games; 1936)
• 1938 Pennsylvania Quakers football season (lost early televised college football games; 1938)
• 1960 Daytona Races (lost CBS and NBC televised footage of NASCAR prelude events to Daytona 500; 1960)
• Bill Longson vs Whipper Billy Watson (lost footage of professional wrestling match; 1947)
• Brooklyn Dodgers 2-5 6-1 Cincinnati Reds (lost footage of MLB doubleheader; 1939)
• Brooklyn Dodgers 23-14 Philadelphia Eagles (lost footage of NFL game; 1939)
• Columbia Lions 1-2 Princeton Tigers (partially found footage of college baseball game; 1939)
• Fordham Rams 34-7 Waynesburg Yellow Jackets (lost footage of college football game; 1939)
• Indianapolis 500 WFBM-TV Broadcasts (lost racing footage; 1949-1950)