Graham Hill

This article is about the British racing driver. For the Zimbabwean academic, see Graham Hill (academic). For the Australian judge, see Graham Hill (judge).

Graham Hill

At the 1969 German Grand Prix
Born	(1929-02-15)15 February 1929
Died	29 November 1975(1975-11-29) (aged 46)
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	British
Active years	1958–1975
Teams	Lotus, BRM, Brabham, Hill
Entries	179 (176 starts)
Championships	2 (1962, 1968)
Wins	14
Podiums	36
Career points	270 (289)
Pole positions	13
Fastest laps	10
First entry	1958 Monaco Grand Prix
First win	1962 Dutch Grand Prix
Last win	1969 Monaco Grand Prix
Last entry	1975 Monaco Grand Prix
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	1958-1966, 1972
Teams	Team Lotus Porsche AG NART/Rob Walker Aston Martin BRM Maranello Concessionaires Alan Mann Racing Ltd Equipe Matra-Simca Shell
Best finish	1st (1972)
Class wins	1 (1972)

Norman Graham Hill OBE (15 February 1929 – 29 November 1975) was a British racing driver and team owner from England, who was a two time Formula One World Champion. He is the only driver to win the Triple Crown of Motorsport—the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Indianapolis 500 and Formula One World Championship. He also appeared on TV in the 1970s on a variety of non sporting programmes including panel games.

Hill and his son Damon are the only father and son pair both to have won the Formula One World Championship. Hill's grandson Josh, Damon's son, also raced his way through the ranks till he retired from Formula 3 in 2013 at the age of 22.

Hill died when the aeroplane he was piloting crashed in foggy conditions near Arkley golf course in North London. Hill, Tony Brise and four other members of Hill's racing team were returning from car testing at Circuit Paul Ricard in France and were due to land at Elstree Airfield. All six were killed.

Biography

Professional history

Hill, who was born in Hampstead, London, served in the Royal Navy as an Engine Room Artificer. After leaving the Navy he re-joined Smiths Instruments. Hill did not pass his driving test until he was 24 years old, and he himself described his first car as "A wreck. A budding racing driver should own such a car, as it teaches delicacy, poise and anticipation, mostly the latter I think!" He had been interested in motorcycles but in 1954 he saw an advertisement for the Universal Motor Racing Club at Brands Hatch offering laps for 5 shillings. He made his debut in a Cooper 500 Formula 3 car and was committed to racing thereafter. Hill joined Team Lotus as a mechanic soon after but quickly talked his way into the cockpit. The Lotus presence in Formula One allowed him to make his debut at the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix, retiring with a halfshaft failure.

Graham Hill testing the BRM P261. Chassis designer John Crosthwaite in pale duffel coat

In 1960, Hill joined BRM, and won the world championship with them in 1962. Hill was also part of the so-called 'British invasion' of drivers and cars in the Indianapolis 500 during the mid-1960s, triumphing there in 1966 in a Lola-Ford.

In 1967, back at Lotus, Hill helped to develop the Lotus 49 with the new Cosworth-V8 engine. After team mates Jim Clark and Mike Spence were killed in early 1968, Hill led the team, and won his second world championship in 1968. The Lotus had a reputation of being very fragile and dangerous at that time, especially with the new aerodynamic aids which caused similar crashes of Hill and Jochen Rindt at the 1969 Spanish Grand Prix. A crash at the 1969 United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen broke both his legs and interrupted his career. Typically, when asked soon after the crash if he wanted to pass on a message to his wife, Hill replied "Just tell her that I won't be dancing for two weeks."

Upon recovery Hill continued to race in F1 for several more years, but never again with the same level of success. Colin Chapman, believing Hill was a spent force, placed him in Rob Walker's team for 1970, sweetening the deal with one of the brand-new Lotus 72 cars. Although Hill scored points in 1970 he started the season far from fully fit and the 72 was not fully developed until late in the season. Hill moved to Brabham for 1971-2; his last win in Formula One was in the non-Championship International Trophy at Silverstone in 1971 with the "lobster claw" Brabham BT34. But the team was in flux after the retirements of Sir Jack Brabham and then Ron Tauranac's sale to Bernie Ecclestone; Hill did not settle there.

Graham Hill driving a Lotus 49 at the Nürburgring in 1969

Hill was known during the latter part of his career for his wit and became a popular personality - he was a regular guest on television and wrote a notably frank and witty autobiography, Life at the Limit, when recovering from his 1969 accident. Hill was also irreverently immortalized on a Monty Python episode ("It's the Arts (or: Intermission)" sketch called "Historical Impersonations"), in which a Gumby appears asking to "see John the Baptist's impersonation of Graham Hill." The head of St. John the Baptist appears on a silver platter, which runs around the floor making putt-putt noises of a race car engine.

Hill was involved with four films between 1966 and 1974, including appearances in Grand Prix and Caravan to Vaccarès, in which he appeared as a helicopter pilot.

Although Hill had concentrated on F1 he also maintained a presence in sports car racing throughout his career (including two runs in the Rover-BRM gas turbine car at Le Mans). As his F1 career drew to a close he became part of the Matra sports car team, taking a victory in the 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans with Henri Pescarolo. This victory completed the so-called Triple Crown of motorsport which is alternatively defined as winning either:

• the Indianapolis 500 (won by Hill in 1966), the 24 Hours of Le Mans (1972) and the Monaco Grand Prix (1963–65, 1968, 1969), or
• the Indianapolis 500, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Formula One World Championship (1962, 1968).

Using either definition, Hill is still the only person ever to have accomplished this feat.

With works drives becoming hard to find, Hill set up his own team in 1973: Embassy Hill with sponsorship from Imperial Tobacco. The team used chassis from Shadow and Lola before evolving the Lola into its own design in 1975. After failing to qualify for the 1975 Monaco Grand Prix, where he had won five times, Hill retired from driving to concentrate on running the team and supporting his protege Tony Brise.

Hill's record of 176 Grand Prix starts remained in place for over a decade, being equalled by Jacques Laffite.

Family

Hill married Bette in 1955. Because Hill had spent all his money on his racing career, Bette paid for the wedding. They had two daughters, Brigitte and Samantha, and a son, Damon, who himself later became Formula One World Champion—the only son of a former world champion to emulate his father.

Rowing

Hill at the 1971 Race of Champions.

Before taking up motor racing, Hill spent several years actively involved in rowing. Initially, he rowed at Southsea Rowing Club, while stationed in Portsmouth with the Royal Navy and at Auriol Rowing Club in Hammersmith. He met Bette at a Boxing Day party at Auriol and, while courting her, he also coached her clubmates at Stuart Ladies' Rowing Club on the River Lea.

In 1952 he joined London Rowing Club, then as now one of the largest and most successful clubs in Great Britain. From 1952 to 1954, Hill rowed in twenty finals with London, usually as stroke of the crew, eight of which resulted in wins. He also stroked the London eight in the highly prestigious Grand Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta, losing a semi-final to Union Sportif Metropolitaine des Transports, France by a length.

Through his racing career he continued to support rowing and London. In 1968 when the club began a financial appeal to modernise its clubhouse, Hill launched proceedings by driving an old Morris Oxford, which had been obtained for £5, head-on into a boundary wall. Hill made three runs to reduce the wall to rubble, and the car was subsequently sold for £15.

Hill felt that the experience gained in rowing helped him in his motor-racing. He wrote in his autobiography:

"I really enjoyed my rowing. It really taught me a lot about myself, and I also think it is a great character-building sport...The self discipline required for rowing and the 'never say die' attitude obviously helped me through the difficult years that lay ahead."

Famously, Hill adopted the colours and cap design of London Rowing Club for his racing helmet - dark blue with white oar-shaped tabs. His son Damon and his grandson Josh later adopted the same colours.

Death

IN MEMORY OF GRAHAM HILL. TWICE WORLD CHAMPION RACING DRIVER WHO DIED WITH FIVE COLLEAGUES WHEN THEIR AIRCRAFT CRASHED HERE IN FREEZING FOG 29TH NOVEMBER 1975

Plaque at Arkley Golf Course, North London.

In November 1975, returning from the Paul Ricard circuit, France, Hill was killed when the Piper PA 23-250 Turbo-Aztec, registration N6645Y, that he was piloting crashed near Arkley golf course in North London while attempting to land at Elstree in foggy conditions at night. The crash also resulted in the deaths of team manager Ray Brimble, mechanics Tony Alcock and Terry Richards, up-and-coming driver Tony Brise and designer Andy Smallman; all from the Embassy Hill team.

His funeral was at St Albans Abbey, and he is buried at St Botolphs church in Shenley.

After his death, Silverstone village, home to the track of the same name, named a road, Graham Hill, after him and there is a "Graham Hill Road" on The Shires estate in nearby Towcester. Graham Hill Bend at Brands Hatch is also named in his honour. A blue plaque commemorates Hill at 32 Parkside, in Mill Hill, London NW7.

Race results

Formula One World Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	WDC	Pts.
1958	Team Lotus	Lotus 12	Climax L4	ARG	MON Ret	NED Ret	500												NC	0
		Lotus 16	Climax L4					BEL Ret	FRA Ret	GBR Ret	GER Ret*	POR Ret	ITA 6	MOR 16
1959	Team Lotus	Lotus 16	Climax L4	MON Ret	500	NED 7	FRA Ret	GBR 9	GER Ret	POR Ret	ITA Ret	USA							NC	0
1960	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P25	BRM L4	ARG Ret															15th	4
		BRM P48	BRM L4		MON 7	500	NED 3	BEL Ret	FRA Ret	GBR Ret	POR Ret	ITA	USA Ret
1961	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P48/57	Climax L4	MON Ret	NED 8	BEL Ret	FRA 6	GBR Ret	GER Ret	ITA Ret	USA 5								16th	3
1962	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P57	BRM V8	NED 1	MON 6	BEL 2	FRA 9	GBR 4	GER 1	ITA 1	USA 2	RSA 1							1st	42 (52)
1963	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P57	BRM V8	MON 1	BEL Ret	NED Ret		GBR 3	GER Ret		USA 1	MEX 4	RSA 3						2nd	29
		BRM P61	BRM V8				FRA 3			ITA 16
1964	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P261	BRM V8	MON 1	NED 4	BEL 5	FRA 2	GBR 2	GER 2	AUT Ret	ITA Ret	USA 1	MEX 11						2nd	39 (41)
1965	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P261	BRM V8	RSA 3	MON 1	BEL 5	FRA 5	GBR 2	NED 4	GER 2	ITA 2	USA 1	MEX Ret						2nd	40 (47)
1966	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P261	BRM V8	MON 3	BEL Ret	FRA Ret	GBR 3	NED 2	GER 4										5th	17
		BRM P83	BRM H16							ITA Ret	USA Ret	MEX Ret
1967	Team Lotus	Lotus 43	BRM H16	RSA Ret															7th	15
		Lotus 33	BRM V8		MON 2
		Lotus 49	Ford V8			NED Ret	BEL Ret	FRA Ret	GBR Ret	GER Ret	CAN 4	ITA Ret	USA 2	MEX Ret
1968	Team Lotus	Lotus 49	Ford V8	RSA 2															1st	48
	Gold Leaf Team Lotus	Lotus 49	Ford V8		ESP 1
		Lotus 49B	Ford V8			MON 1	BEL Ret	NED 9	FRA Ret	GBR Ret	GER 2	ITA Ret	CAN 4	USA 2	MEX 1
1969	Gold Leaf Team Lotus	Lotus 49B	Ford V8	RSA 2	ESP Ret	MON 1	NED 7	FRA 6	GBR 7	GER 4	ITA 9	CAN Ret	USA Ret	MEX					7th	19
1970	Rob Walker Racing Team	Lotus 49C	Ford V8	RSA 6	ESP 4														13th	7
	Brooke Bond Oxo Racing - Rob Walker	Lotus 49C	Ford V8			MON 5	BEL Ret	NED NC	FRA 10	GBR 6	GER Ret	AUT
		Lotus 72C	Ford V8										ITA DNS	CAN NC	USA Ret	MEX Ret
1971	Motor Racing Developments	Brabham BT33	Ford V8	RSA 9															21st	2
		Brabham BT34	Ford V8		ESP Ret	MON Ret	NED 10	FRA Ret	GBR Ret	GER 9	AUT 5	ITA Ret	CAN Ret	USA 7
1972	Motor Racing Developments	Brabham BT33	Ford V8	ARG Ret	RSA 6														15th	4
		Brabham BT37	Ford V8			ESP 10	MON 12	BEL Ret	FRA 10	GBR Ret	GER 6	AUT Ret	ITA 5	CAN 8	USA 11
1973	Embassy Racing	Shadow DN1	Ford V8	ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP Ret	BEL 9	MON Ret	SWE Ret	FRA 10	GBR Ret	NED NC	GER 13	AUT Ret	ITA 14	CAN 16	USA 13	NC	0
1974	Embassy Racing with Graham Hill	Lola T370	Ford V8	ARG Ret	BRA 11	RSA 12	ESP Ret	BEL 8	MON 7	SWE 6	NED Ret	FRA 13	GBR 13	GER 9	AUT 12	ITA 8	CAN 14	USA 8	18th	1
1975	Embassy Racing with Graham Hill	Lola T371	Ford V8	ARG 10	BRA 12	RSA DNQ	ESP												NC	0
		Hill GH1	Ford V8					MON DNQ	BEL	SWE	NED	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	USA

* Hill entered the 1958 German Grand Prix in a Formula Two chassis.

Non-Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21
1957	Graham Hill	Willment	Climax	SYR	PAU	GLV	NAP	RMS	CAE	INT 13	MOD	MOR
1958	Team Lotus	Lotus 12	Climax L4	GLV Ret	SYR	AIN 7	INT 8	CAE
1959	Team Lotus	Lotus 16	Climax L4	GLV Ret	AIN 11	INT Ret	OUL 5	SIL Ret
1960	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P48	BRM L4	GLV 5	INT	SIL 2	LOM 9	OUL
1961	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P57	BRM L4	LOM	GLV 2	PAU	BRX	VIE	AIN 3	SYR NC	NAP	LON	SIL 13	SOL	KAN	DAN	MOD 7	FLG	OUL Ret	LEW	VAL	RAN	NAT	RSA
1962	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P57	BRM V8	CAP	BRX Ret	LOM 2	LAV	GLV 1	PAU	AIN Ret	INT 1	NAP	MAL 3	CLP	RMS 2	SOL	KAN Ret	MED	DAN Ret	OUL 2	MEX	RAN Ret	NAT 15
1963	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P578	BRM V8	LOM 1	GLV 9	PAU	IMO	SYR	AIN 1	INT Ret	ROM	SOL	KAN	MED	AUT	OUL 3	RAN
1964	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P261	BRM V8	DMT Ret	NWT Ret	SYR	AIN 2	INT 2	SOL Ret	MED
	John Willment Automobiles	Brabham BT11									RAN 1
1965	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P261	BRM V8	ROC Ret	SYR	SMT 2	INT Ret	MED	RAN
1966	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM P83	BRM V8	RSA	SYR	INT	OUL Ret
1967	Team Lotus	Lotus 33	BRM V8	ROC	SPR 8	INT 4	SYR
		Lotus 48	Ford V8					OUL 3
		Lotus 49	Ford V8						ESP 2
1968	Team Lotus	Lotus 49	Ford V8	ROC Ret	INT Ret	OUL Ret
1969	Team Lotus	Lotus 49B	Ford V8	ROC 2	INT 7	MAD	OUL Ret
1970	Rob Walker Racing Team	Lotus 49C	Ford V8	ROC 5	INT 9	OUL Ret
1971	Motor Racing Developments	Brabham BT34	Ford V8	ARG	ROC Ret	QUE 26	SPR	INT 1	RIN	OUL	VIC 8
1972	Motor Racing Developments	Brabham BT37	Ford V8	ROC 7	BRA	INT	OUL	REP	VIC Ret
1973	Motor Racing Developments	Brabham BT37	Ford V8	ROC Ret	INT
1974	Embassy Racing	Lola T370	Ford V8	PRE	ROC Ret	INT Ret
1975	Embassy Racing with Graham Hill	Hill GH1	Ford V8	ROC	INT 11	SUI

Indy 500 results

Year	Car number	Start	Qual. speed	Speed rank	Finish	Laps completed	Laps led	Race status	Chassis
1966	24	15	159.243	23	1	200	10	Running	Lola-Ford
1967	81	31	163.317	21	32	23	0	Piston	Lotus-Ford 42/B1
1968	70	2	171.208	2	19	110	0	Crash T2	Lotus - Pratt&Whitney 56/3

Starts	3
Poles	0
Front Row	1
Wins	1
Top 5	1
Top 10	1
Retired	2

• Hill failed to qualify the innovative John Crosthwaite (who had worked with Hill at Team Lotus) designed 'roller skate' car for the 1963 Indianapolis 500 race after crashing in practice. Hill, who had been commuting weekly due to other commitments in Europe, would not wait in the USA while the car was repaired and risk not qualifying or qualifying badly.
• Hill's 1966 victory marked the first win by a rookie driver since Frank Lockhart's 1927 win and the last until Juan Montoya's visit to Victory Lane in 2000.
• Hill entered the 1969 Indianapolis 500, but his car (Lotus-Ford Chassis 64/2) was withdrawn during practice along with those of Mario Andretti and Jochen Rindt due to delays rectifying problems associated with hub failure on Andretti's car.

Complete Tasman Series results

Year	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Rank	Points
1964	Brabham BT4	LEV	PUK	WIG	TER	SAN	WAR 4	LAK	LON 1	6th	12
1965	Brabham BT11A	PUK 1	LEV	WIG	TER	WAR 5	SAN Ret	LON 4		7th	14
1966	BRM P261	PUK 1	LEV	WIG	TER	WAR 2	LAK 1	SAN (3)	LON 2	2nd	30 (34)
1967	Lotus 48	PUK	WIG	LAK	WAR Ret	SAN	LON			NC	0
1968	Lotus 49T	PUK	LEV	WIG	TER	SUR 2	WAR 2	SAN 3	LON 6	4th	17
1969	Lotus 49T	PUK Ret	LEV Ret	WIG 2	TER 2	LAK 4	WAR 11	SAN 6		5th	16

Credits

Hill's easy wit and charm helped him become a television personality, notably on the BBC show Call My Bluff with Patrick Campbell and Frank Muir. For a number of years in the early 1970s he appeared as one half of a double act, with Jackie Stewart, as an insert within the BBC Sports Personality of the Year show.

In 1990, Hill was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame.

A one-off BBC Four documentary called Graham Hill: Driven was first broadcast on 26 May 2008.

External links

• Graham Hill profile at The 500 Owners Association
• Grand Prix History - Hall of Fame, Graham Hill
• Graham Hill Statistics
• Graham Hill Photos
• Graham Hill, The Stig
• The Greatest 33
• The Greatest 33 Profile
• Official Accident Report on crash of N6645Y by the AAIB