DVD Review: A Gentleman’s Motor Racing Diary
Positives
Negatives
If you’re a fan of the 1950’s-60’s grand prix racing with teammates Fangio and Moss in the Silver Arrows alongside Hawthorn, the Lancia Ferraris, BRM and Vanwall in addition to vintage Aston Martin GT and Le Mans races then the motorsport documentary “A Gentleman’s Racing Diary” may be worth a look.
This is a 5 volume DVD series with Volume One covering races during 1953-1955; Volume 2 (1955-1957); Volume 3 (1958-1959); Volume 4 (1959-1963) and Volume 5 (1964-1973) all through the lens of British amateur filmaker John Tate who filmed races as he travelled with the Aston Martin and Connaught teams.
The DVD menu system is quite basic but the film footage is surprisingly good. Given it’s archival film, the sound quality isn’t exactly great however the voice over narration is provided by John Tate’s son.
The Aston Martin DBR4 footage appears in Vol 3 and for Jim Clark, Graham Hill fans, then Vol 4 is the one to get.
I picked up my copy in the bargain bin from a discount DVD book store for the cost of a cup of coffee – so its worth keeping your eyes open if you happen to visit these stores.
