0:00:02 > 0:00:05'I'm Patrick Stewart - actor
0:00:05 > 0:00:07'and lifelong motor racing fan.
0:00:10 > 0:00:14'Now I'm about to embark on a journey that will bring to life the career
0:00:14 > 0:00:17'of one of my all-time heroes -
0:00:17 > 0:00:20'1950s racing legend, Sir Stirling Moss.'
0:00:22 > 0:00:25It's...breathtaking.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28A bit tighter. Bit tighter. That's the field.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31'I'm getting behind the wheel of the cars he drove to glory...'
0:00:31 > 0:00:34Sorry about that.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37'..and re-living his most memorable victories first hand...'
0:00:37 > 0:00:39It's Moss who crosses the line to win in record time.
0:00:39 > 0:00:40That's beautiful.
0:00:40 > 0:00:46'..all to help me understand how one man won the hearts and minds of the British public.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51'It's a tale of fast cars...'
0:00:51 > 0:00:53Stirling holds a ten-second lead.
0:00:53 > 0:00:54'..epic battles...'
0:00:54 > 0:00:55He's gone!
0:00:55 > 0:00:58'..and survival against all the odds.'
0:00:58 > 0:01:02- Are you going to try and persuade him to stop racing after this? - I shall ask him.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04- That shows it there.- Oh, Lord.
0:01:04 > 0:01:06Do you think you're indestructible?
0:01:06 > 0:01:08Why should I have another accident?
0:01:08 > 0:01:12'Now I'm going to experience the Stirling Moss story...
0:01:12 > 0:01:14'from the driver's seat.'
0:01:14 > 0:01:16This beats the Enterprise any day.
0:01:30 > 0:01:35We're here at Silverstone and I'm driving in a celebrity race.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38I want to be driving over the finishing line
0:01:38 > 0:01:40on the Grand Prix circuit at Silverstone
0:01:40 > 0:01:42when I take the chequered flag.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46In 15th position. There are 15 of us.
0:01:48 > 0:01:53Acting might be my passion, but I've always loved cars
0:01:53 > 0:01:54and at the age of 72...
0:01:58 > 0:02:01..I've just been awarded my racing licence.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03One of the problems with motor racing is that
0:02:03 > 0:02:06I actually don't like going very fast.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08Number 12 there, Sir Patrick Stewart
0:02:08 > 0:02:12looking as though he's sitting in an armchair. Totally relaxed.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15I get to a point where I think that's just fast enough.
0:02:16 > 0:02:17And that's a handicap.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24For me, racing a car for a living is a farfetched fantasy,
0:02:24 > 0:02:29encapsulated by a man I have always envied and respected.
0:02:29 > 0:02:34When I was a kid, there was an English driver called Stirling Moss.
0:02:37 > 0:02:43He was living in a world that was as remote from my world as possible.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47A working-class kid growing up in a mill town in the West Riding of Yorkshire.
0:02:47 > 0:02:49As an aspiring actor,
0:02:49 > 0:02:53I was seduced by Stirling's world of speed and glamour.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56It's difficult to communicate
0:02:56 > 0:03:01to the enthusiast of today who wasn't lucky enough to be alive at the time
0:03:01 > 0:03:04just how great a driver he was.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07Five world records all broken by about 20%.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11His name stands for being a true racer.
0:03:11 > 0:03:13This is a country
0:03:13 > 0:03:14that loves motor racing
0:03:14 > 0:03:17and he is probably the biggest star of all.
0:03:17 > 0:03:22When he passed people, which he frequently did, of course,
0:03:22 > 0:03:24he would always give them a gentlemanly wave.
0:03:24 > 0:03:26Stirling waving his hand.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30They must have been very irritated indeed by his skill and his decency.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35But I want to get to know the real Stirling Moss...
0:03:37 > 0:03:39Patrick Stewart taking ninth place.
0:03:40 > 0:03:42..and, under his watchful eye,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45try and emulate one of his greatest-ever victories.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51I wonder if that means I'll have to get better at driving fast.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57In a way I could never have anticipated, these things have come together.
0:03:57 > 0:03:58Two people.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06Before meeting the man himself,
0:04:06 > 0:04:11I need to know more about why Stirling Moss was such a successful driver...
0:04:11 > 0:04:13Stirling Moss, Maserati, number 28,
0:04:13 > 0:04:15took an early lead and held it.
0:04:15 > 0:04:17..so I've enlisted the help of a man
0:04:17 > 0:04:20who's driven in nearly as many disciplines as Moss.
0:04:21 > 0:04:26Tiff Needell has raced Formula One in Monaco, sports cars at Le Mans
0:04:26 > 0:04:28and rallied in the forests of England.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33If anyone knows what it takes to be an all-round driver, he does.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35Tiff, look at this.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38Sir Stirling Moss sprinting across the track,
0:04:38 > 0:04:42leaping so agilely into his car, slipping down into the seat
0:04:42 > 0:04:44and off he goes with 15 or 20 other cars.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51Why was there something different and special about this driver?
0:04:51 > 0:04:54It almost starts with that running start we are seeing now
0:04:54 > 0:04:57because it was his economy of movement.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00The relaxed pose at the wheel.
0:05:00 > 0:05:01The real greats, I believe,
0:05:01 > 0:05:04they've got their brains ahead of their bodies
0:05:04 > 0:05:08so they'd know what the car was going to do before it got there.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13Stirling Moss was post-war Britain's first professional racing driver.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15This is the drive of his life.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18If you're a professional racing driver,
0:05:18 > 0:05:19you are in there to try and win.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22Therefore, you've got to keep the pressure up all the time.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26He was the man teenage boys wanted to be.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29And women wanted to be with.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31- There's a beautiful blonde. - Beautiful young woman.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35But his career was very different to a modern driver.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38It's Moss who crosses the line to win in record time.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42He moved from team to team, from rallying to racing.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44Very distinctive.
0:05:44 > 0:05:48It was an era when top drivers drove in every discipline.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51In a race day, you do Formula One, saloon cars, sports cars.
0:05:51 > 0:05:54- On the same day? - Yes.- Extraordinary.
0:05:54 > 0:05:58That's the best illustration of the quality of his technique.
0:05:58 > 0:05:59That he could shift in that way.
0:05:59 > 0:06:03He didn't have to be programmed for one vehicle.
0:06:03 > 0:06:08Stirling reached the same top speeds as modern drivers, up to 180 mph,
0:06:08 > 0:06:13but with very little grip, poor brakes and no safety precautions.
0:06:13 > 0:06:17It dawned on me that perhaps the most amazing thing
0:06:17 > 0:06:19is that he's still alive.
0:06:19 > 0:06:20Here we are, look.
0:06:20 > 0:06:24In the pits and they're refuelling and fuel is splashing everywhere.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31There's barely room for the car to get through the crowd of spectators.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37The skills in his day were so much more important.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40Death is something which frightens me.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43Thinking of it isn't going to make it less likely to happen,
0:06:43 > 0:06:45therefore I don't think about it.
0:06:45 > 0:06:51It was one of the reasons why there was such camaraderie among drivers.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55So many of his colleagues and friends were badly injured or died.
0:06:56 > 0:07:01I'm going to be coming face-to-face with him very shortly and,
0:07:01 > 0:07:04having been looking at this film and hearing you talk about what was
0:07:04 > 0:07:09so special about Stirling Moss, I am really looking forward to it.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13He's a wonderful man. You'll have a great time. Meeting a real hero.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Thank you. I'm a little nervous.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22I'm meeting Stirling for the first time at his Mayfair flat
0:07:22 > 0:07:26and things haven't really changed around here since my last visit.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29I have a confession to make at this point.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33Decades ago, when I was in my 20s, I had discovered from a friend
0:07:33 > 0:07:37who worked in Mayfair that this is where Stirling lived
0:07:37 > 0:07:39and I was such a fan that I walked up here and stood,
0:07:39 > 0:07:42pretty much in this spot,
0:07:42 > 0:07:47looking at the house in excitement and awe.
0:07:54 > 0:08:01- Sir Patrick.- Sir Stirling, good morning.- Do come in.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05This is a huge pleasure for me and a treat.
0:08:05 > 0:08:07- Let's go through to my office. - Lead the way.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14Stirling has lived here for the last 55 years
0:08:14 > 0:08:16after buying the land as a bomb site
0:08:16 > 0:08:21and building a three-storey house on it to his own exacting specifications.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23'My bedroom is completely automated.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26'There are press button controls to the wardrobe doors,
0:08:26 > 0:08:29'for the curtains, for filling the bath and what have you.'
0:08:31 > 0:08:34Precision is very important and so it was to me in my life
0:08:34 > 0:08:37and I knew exactly what I wanted where.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41So being able to build a house that one had designed was a great help to me.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45The walls contain my stereo equipment, a radio, tape recorder,
0:08:45 > 0:08:49record player and, of course, some of my most treasured awards.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53Stirling's house is like a museum,
0:08:53 > 0:08:55a shrine to an amazing life
0:08:55 > 0:08:59which, unsurprisingly, he likes to be reminded of.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04I had such a fantastic life as a young man, I can't tell you.
0:09:04 > 0:09:09The age of 16, 17 years old, you're suddenly given a car to go out and
0:09:09 > 0:09:13play with and drive it as hard as you possibly can and beat other drivers.
0:09:13 > 0:09:16A fabulous life.
0:09:18 > 0:09:20You were, from quite early on,
0:09:20 > 0:09:25considered to be one of the English sporting playboys, am I right?
0:09:25 > 0:09:30Oh, yes, absolutely. I'm certainly heterosexual, let's put it that way.
0:09:30 > 0:09:35Petra Sherman of Germany won the title. 33-20-33. A nice balance.
0:09:35 > 0:09:37Travelling as I was all round the world,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40when you go into a place, you meet a pretty girl, off you go and...
0:09:40 > 0:09:44I would say it was probably as good a life as anybody could ask for.
0:09:44 > 0:09:46'Boy, that's really in my line of business!'
0:09:48 > 0:09:52There are many interesting mementos and artefacts in this room
0:09:52 > 0:09:56but the very first thing that caught my eye are the two steering wheels
0:09:56 > 0:09:59hanging above the door which appear to have suffered some distress.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02When I think of the aggro that gave me...
0:10:02 > 0:10:06I mean, broken back, broken legs on one and on the other one,
0:10:06 > 0:10:10forced my retirement. So they are not good news in any way.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12But you don't feel in any way superstitious
0:10:12 > 0:10:15that there they are hanging above the door?
0:10:15 > 0:10:19No, all I can say is fingers up to them, actually.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23He's lost teeth, broken his shoulder, both legs, his back,
0:10:23 > 0:10:29his skull and has been in a coma for 38 days thanks to motor racing.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35One of the reasons I wanted to take part was because it was dangerous.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39The bravado of youth, you know. Here I am, 17, 18 years old.
0:10:39 > 0:10:41To do something that was really dangerous is exciting
0:10:41 > 0:10:44and exhilarating.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47But it was more than really dangerous, it was potentially fatal.
0:10:47 > 0:10:51- We were losing three or four drivers a year.- Every year?- Every year.
0:10:51 > 0:10:53When it happened I would say if it had been me,
0:10:53 > 0:10:56I would have been in a slightly different position
0:10:56 > 0:10:59- or I wouldn't have done this or... - It would never happen to you.
0:10:59 > 0:11:00Exactly. Exactly.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03If I'd ever had an accident that I felt was my own fault,
0:11:03 > 0:11:07- I think I'd have stopped. - And you never did?- No, I didn't.
0:11:07 > 0:11:08Come in the lift.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12This is interesting because this is a carbon fibre lift
0:11:12 > 0:11:15and it was made by Williams Formula One team.
0:11:17 > 0:11:21It amazed me that Stirling was so positive about the danger he faced.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27- Are we there?- OK, come through.
0:11:27 > 0:11:31'Even after the accident in 1962 that ended his career.'
0:11:35 > 0:11:39- This is my crash, actually. See, that shows it there.- Oh, Lord!
0:11:42 > 0:11:44I don't know where all the blood came from, really.
0:11:44 > 0:11:50The car is completely mangled. It barely looks like...
0:11:50 > 0:11:56- a racing car at all now.- When I went off, I'd been doing 140 at least.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58They thought I was going to die, I think, actually.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05But...I'm glad to say that's a long time ago.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11Right, come out and we'll go in this little car
0:12:11 > 0:12:15which was the first car I actually learnt to drive with.
0:12:15 > 0:12:21- Here we are. How about that? Isn't that lovely?- Oh, this is wonderful.
0:12:27 > 0:12:32- How old were you when you got into this?- This one? Six.- What?
0:12:32 > 0:12:34- Six years old? - Yes, on the farm. Yeah.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40Stirling had borrowed the Austin
0:12:40 > 0:12:42so that we could retrace his steps
0:12:42 > 0:12:44right from the very start of his career.
0:12:47 > 0:12:49We were going to his childhood home
0:12:49 > 0:12:52where I could learn more about how he became a racing legend.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55- Is this Bray village we're coming into? - We're coming into the village, yes.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01- So the roads around here were the roads that you had your first driving experience.- Oh, absolutely.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08- Can you see left?- All clear.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11Stirling hasn't been to Long White Cloud
0:13:11 > 0:13:13since he lived here as a teenager.
0:13:13 > 0:13:17His father, a dentist, obviously did well for himself.
0:13:20 > 0:13:25Absolutely fantastic. The change is enormous.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29Really, I would not have thought I'd ever lived here.
0:13:29 > 0:13:31- The Thames is just here.- Just there.
0:13:31 > 0:13:32Right.
0:13:32 > 0:13:38He grew up in a beautiful spot but, surprisingly, his early years
0:13:38 > 0:13:40weren't as idyllic as you might think.
0:13:40 > 0:13:42I had a lot of problems with bullying.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44My name was Moss and they called me a yid.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46It was a pretty tough upbringing.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48It's not very nice when you're 10 or 11 years old.
0:13:48 > 0:13:53Did it have a positive impact, do you think, in your later years?
0:13:53 > 0:13:55I think it probably did.
0:13:55 > 0:13:59I'm a competitive sort of person so I always enjoyed sprinting
0:13:59 > 0:14:00and that sort of stuff.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04So that's how you succeeded at school, by being athletic?
0:14:04 > 0:14:06Yes, I certainly think it was a help.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10Stirling answered back by proving himself as an athlete
0:14:10 > 0:14:12and later with the ladies, too.
0:14:14 > 0:14:18I did meet a real cracker actually, called Sylvia.
0:14:18 > 0:14:22My mother came back, ran up the steps, banged on the door.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25I was in there, of course. She turned to Sylvia and said,
0:14:25 > 0:14:27"Is this any way for a young lady to behave?"
0:14:27 > 0:14:29So I pushed her behind me and said,
0:14:29 > 0:14:31"If you want to speak to Sylvia, please do it through me."
0:14:31 > 0:14:33It was a big drama.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39In the late '40s, motor-racing was an amateur sport
0:14:39 > 0:14:42which both Stirling's parents enjoyed.
0:14:42 > 0:14:46They encouraged him and his sister, Pat, to drive from an early age.
0:14:47 > 0:14:52But most of his early training came from a hobby that didn't involve cars.
0:14:52 > 0:14:55My mother was interested in horses and, of course, over there,
0:14:55 > 0:14:58originally, there were stables.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02The lessons that you learned in balancing a horse...
0:15:02 > 0:15:04Very much the same thing happens with a car.
0:15:04 > 0:15:06When you go into a corner,
0:15:06 > 0:15:09you try and keep your car balanced all the way through it.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13- I won 50 or 60 awards. - Any money? Any cash?
0:15:13 > 0:15:17Yeah, and I used that money actually to buy my first racing car.
0:15:17 > 0:15:22My father found my cheque book and he said, "What's this 50 quid?"
0:15:22 > 0:15:25I had to own up that it was the deposit on a racing car.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28He said, "No son of mine is going to be a racing driver."
0:15:28 > 0:15:31And so it took a lot of massaging to get my father to agree
0:15:31 > 0:15:33and then he said, "If you're going to race,
0:15:33 > 0:15:35"you're going to wear a crash hat."
0:15:35 > 0:15:37I said to him, "Dad, that's rather sissy."
0:15:37 > 0:15:40He said, "I don't care, you're going to wear a crash hat."
0:15:40 > 0:15:42Stirling's father was disappointed he didn't want
0:15:42 > 0:15:46to be a dentist and doubtful he could make a living from a hobby.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52But by the age of 20, he had a reputation as a fearless young driver,
0:15:52 > 0:15:56although the establishment were yet to take him seriously.
0:16:02 > 0:16:06The difficulty for any young racing driver is to prove themselves
0:16:06 > 0:16:07up against big opposition.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10Stirling Moss had to break through.
0:16:11 > 0:16:16But no British manufacturer would contemplate giving the boy
0:16:16 > 0:16:17a drive in the TT.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20On the eve of his 21st birthday,
0:16:20 > 0:16:24Stirling turned up at the biggest sports car race in Britain -
0:16:24 > 0:16:28the Ulster TT...with a car he'd borrowed from a family friend.
0:16:30 > 0:16:33It was straight off the assembly line, as a matter of fact.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36The makers weren't too pleased about Stirling driving it.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39It seems as if you were rather sticking your neck out
0:16:39 > 0:16:41in making the offer.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44No, no, some of us had spotted Stirling a long time.
0:16:44 > 0:16:45We knew he was on the up and up.
0:16:48 > 0:16:52Come the race weekend, it absolutely poured down.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55For Stirling Moss, this was manna from heaven
0:16:55 > 0:16:59because it was an opportunity to show what he could do
0:16:59 > 0:17:01up against the established stars in great cars.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03'Yes, they're off!
0:17:03 > 0:17:07'And that's Stirling Moss jumping into his Jaguar, car number seven.'
0:17:12 > 0:17:15I remember going round there and obviously getting pit signals,
0:17:15 > 0:17:18and I could see that I was gaining a bit here and there.
0:17:18 > 0:17:22I liked the wet. I think that suited my style.
0:17:22 > 0:17:23It played into my hands.
0:17:28 > 0:17:33I mean, to win the Tourist Trophy, it was quite overwhelming to me, really.
0:17:33 > 0:17:37I had not ever won a really serious race.
0:17:37 > 0:17:39The elation brings tears to your eyes.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44And that evening, Jaguar asked him
0:17:44 > 0:17:48if he would lead the works team in 1951.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53And suddenly, you've got rival team managers saying, who is this guy?
0:17:53 > 0:17:55How can he go that fast?
0:17:57 > 0:18:01'Stirling Moss in another Jaguar has left at about 106 miles an hour.'
0:18:01 > 0:18:03As a member of Team Jaguar,
0:18:03 > 0:18:07Stirling made a name for himself in a number of competitions.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10'The young, but most capable hands of Stirling Moss.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14'The 21-year-old who is Britain's greatest racing hope today.'
0:18:15 > 0:18:19I think that people wanted a hero after the war. Stirling,
0:18:19 > 0:18:22because he was young, he gave the people some cheer
0:18:22 > 0:18:24and some hope, I think.
0:18:31 > 0:18:35Stirling had won the country over with his performances in Jaguar sports cars,
0:18:35 > 0:18:40but he also wanted to conquer the glamorous world of high-speed Formula One.
0:18:42 > 0:18:46'Italy's Ferraris are out to dominate the new Formula One field.'
0:18:46 > 0:18:51Just like today, Formula One in the '50s meant thoroughbred single-seater cars,
0:18:51 > 0:18:56but back then, the world championship was dominated by Italians.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01You can't really think of Formula One without Ferrari.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05They're sort of part national institution
0:19:05 > 0:19:06and part race team.
0:19:06 > 0:19:11To be a Ferrari racing driver, would be to have arrived completely.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14Word of Stirling's ability had reached the Continent,
0:19:14 > 0:19:16where he was invited to drive
0:19:16 > 0:19:19for the famously manipulative Enzo Ferrari.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23He was a man that everybody was fairly scared of,
0:19:23 > 0:19:25even his team managers.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29If there was a crash, he'd ask about the car first, before the driver.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32He offered me a car and I went all the way down to Bari
0:19:32 > 0:19:35in southern Italy with my father, being thrilled.
0:19:35 > 0:19:36But at the last minute,
0:19:36 > 0:19:40Ferrari opted for a famous Italian driver instead.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43And I found that the car had been given to Taruffi.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46Stirling didn't take kindly to the snub
0:19:46 > 0:19:50and so he turned his back on the biggest name in motorsport.
0:19:51 > 0:19:54I was very angry. A gentleman wouldn't do that.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58And I vowed, there and then, that never would I drive for Ferrari.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02He returned from Italy determined to win the Formula One
0:20:02 > 0:20:06world championship in a British car.
0:20:06 > 0:20:08I'm very thrilled, Ray, because at last it seems we're going
0:20:08 > 0:20:11to have the chassis and road holding and an engine built for the job.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14So perhaps we'll be able to compete with the Italians
0:20:14 > 0:20:15on their own ground.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18We've certainly got the driver, so we'll keep our fingers crossed.
0:20:21 > 0:20:26Eventually, Ferrari found an Englishman happy to drive his cars.
0:20:26 > 0:20:30Come 1953, fun-loving Mike Hawthorn was the man to beat.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33This tall, young, hard-drinking,
0:20:33 > 0:20:35womanising boy from Farnham
0:20:35 > 0:20:37popped up on the scene.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41There was no comparison between Stirling and Mike.
0:20:41 > 0:20:45You found that people who liked Moss didn't like Hawthorn,
0:20:45 > 0:20:46and vice versa.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49I'd like to say how much I enjoyed today's racing.
0:20:49 > 0:20:53It's certainly given me great pleasure to win the trophy.
0:20:54 > 0:20:59While Stirling, in his home-grown technology, had hit a career low.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01'Too bad, trouble robs Moss of victory.'
0:21:03 > 0:21:08'His determination to drive British had become an insuperable handicap.'
0:21:08 > 0:21:10If he was going to keep up with Hawthorn, he needed
0:21:10 > 0:21:15to drive for a major team and so his father took drastic measures.
0:21:16 > 0:21:19My father then went to see Maserati.
0:21:19 > 0:21:20They worked out a deal
0:21:20 > 0:21:24where they would supply me with the same cars they were racing,
0:21:24 > 0:21:27they would keep it up-to-date if anything new came out.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31They bought it without telling me and they bought it with my money!
0:21:32 > 0:21:35Fed up with British cars, Stirling's father bought
0:21:35 > 0:21:38an Italian Maserati, hoping they would attract
0:21:38 > 0:21:39the attention of a major team.
0:21:41 > 0:21:45I was surprised at how much money they had spent, obviously,
0:21:45 > 0:21:48but the main thing was, that now my back was to the wall.
0:21:49 > 0:21:51The Maserati 250F.
0:21:51 > 0:21:52A gorgeous car even now
0:21:52 > 0:21:57and it was a car that Stirling Moss just felt totally at home with.
0:21:57 > 0:22:02And suddenly, he was producing these world-beating performances.
0:22:05 > 0:22:09It opened the eyes of people around the world to the quality
0:22:09 > 0:22:10and the skills of this young man.
0:22:17 > 0:22:21The plan worked, and German giants Mercedes came knocking.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27Having not competed since the war, Mercedes were back -
0:22:27 > 0:22:31and they wanted a team of youth and experience.
0:22:33 > 0:22:35Stirling provided the youth.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40Then double world champion Fangio, the experience.
0:22:42 > 0:22:47'And from now on, his nickname, The Boy, somehow no longer seemed appropriate.'
0:22:47 > 0:22:53Mercedes wanted to win in every category of racing
0:22:53 > 0:22:57and sent Moss and Fangio to Italy to take on the Italian giants
0:22:57 > 0:22:59in their own back yard.
0:23:05 > 0:23:06My next meeting with Stirling
0:23:06 > 0:23:08is in Florence...
0:23:09 > 0:23:13..where, with the resources of Mercedes behind him,
0:23:13 > 0:23:16he set his sights on the world's toughest sports car race.
0:23:18 > 0:23:22- Here we are, early morning, in Florence.- Florence, exactly.
0:23:22 > 0:23:25Why are we in Florence? And what does it mean to you and me?
0:23:25 > 0:23:27We're in Florence because this is one of the great places
0:23:27 > 0:23:31- we used to race through. Right through the middle of the town. - Race through?
0:23:31 > 0:23:34- And what race would this be? - The Mille Miglia 1955.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40Every Italian knew what the Mille Miglia was. They all watched it.
0:23:40 > 0:23:42Amazing atmosphere, I can't tell you.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49The Mille Miglia was the sports car equivalent of the Tour de France.
0:23:49 > 0:23:531,000 miles of racing on public roads.
0:24:00 > 0:24:04- And the race ends up where it began? - Exactly. At Brescia.- In Brescia.
0:24:04 > 0:24:06Just over ten hours later.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09- This sounds very, very challenging. - Yes, it was!
0:24:09 > 0:24:13But why don't we go and let's find out what it's like? Let's go.
0:24:16 > 0:24:18You know, you wouldn't believe it,
0:24:18 > 0:24:22- but we actually raced down roads like this in the Mille.- This...?- Yes.
0:24:22 > 0:24:26Bikes wouldn't be there, but you'd be racing down there.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29- It's little more than a car's width? - Oh, absolutely.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32'And here comes Moss, well out in front with the leaders.'
0:24:34 > 0:24:37And what kind of speed would you go down a street like this?
0:24:37 > 0:24:40You would get up to 100 miles an hour.
0:24:40 > 0:24:41About that.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44To win, Stirling needed to know the roads
0:24:44 > 0:24:47better than the Italians themselves.
0:24:47 > 0:24:49So with navigator Denis Jenkinson,
0:24:49 > 0:24:54he studied every last mile in my all-time favourite car -
0:24:54 > 0:24:56the sublime Mercedes Gullwing.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58Look at that.
0:25:10 > 0:25:11Beautiful car.
0:25:12 > 0:25:14That's our transport.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18Come on, shall we have a go in it?
0:25:18 > 0:25:20Yeah, yes. It's glorious.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28Your seat.
0:25:28 > 0:25:30Isn't it lovely?
0:25:31 > 0:25:36I have never been this close to this vehicle before.
0:25:36 > 0:25:38It's...breathtaking.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11We're going through some very beautiful countryside.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14How much time did you have to admire the view, Stirling?
0:26:14 > 0:26:17Didn't do too much looking around, I must be honest.
0:26:17 > 0:26:21Because on this course, we probably would get up to 110, 120.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26This is quite a sinuous road, as you can see.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29Swoops from the left to the right, you come down here and give it
0:26:29 > 0:26:33the boot here and you'd be at the next corner in no time at all.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36Absolutely magic. Absolutely magic.
0:26:37 > 0:26:41But I realise I am now 83, not 25.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45Now I will drive each corner very much more carefully,
0:26:45 > 0:26:46with more respect.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52Were there any fatalities in 1955, on your...
0:26:52 > 0:26:56I believe so, but there were every year, I'm told.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59But it's inevitable, that people are going to get killed.
0:26:59 > 0:27:06I have heard that the race was stopped on the instructions of the Vatican.
0:27:06 > 0:27:08I've heard that, I don't know if it's true.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12I couldn't get him on the phone! He was continually engaged.
0:27:13 > 0:27:18I would have thought if anybody could get the Pope on the phone, Stirling, it would be you!
0:27:20 > 0:27:26At what point did you know that you had won? After you crossed...?
0:27:26 > 0:27:29That was the awful thing. I crossed the finish line, no idea.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32I knew it was likely I had won, but I had to wait
0:27:32 > 0:27:35until every car that started after me had come through.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39How did you celebrate that night?
0:27:39 > 0:27:44- Gosh, we had celebrations...- And were you alone?- Oh, no, no, no.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46I hope I had a young lady with me,
0:27:46 > 0:27:49but I'd have to look it up in my diary.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51- Your little black book.- Exactly.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56Driving the route was like going back in time,
0:27:56 > 0:28:00and got me thinking about what I was doing in 1955.
0:28:00 > 0:28:03I was just leaving Mirfield Secondary Modern school right then.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06I had a crush on the head girl, but she never knew it,
0:28:06 > 0:28:10and of course, I was never brave enough to make any kind of advances.
0:28:11 > 0:28:15While you were driving young women from Brescia to Stuttgart,
0:28:15 > 0:28:17having won the Mille Miglia.
0:28:17 > 0:28:19To each his own, old boy!
0:28:22 > 0:28:25I'm sorry that I'm not the attractive young woman
0:28:25 > 0:28:26you had with you then.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28So am I! But I enjoy your company.
0:28:28 > 0:28:30Stirling, oh, Lord.
0:28:30 > 0:28:35Stirling certainly knew how to live the high life, but I was
0:28:35 > 0:28:39learning that when it came to racing, he left nothing to chance.
0:28:42 > 0:28:46How did you know what was coming on a 1,000 mile circuit?
0:28:46 > 0:28:48Because Jenks was my co-driver, he was my passenger,
0:28:48 > 0:28:51and he had this, the thing we called the bog roll.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54And on here, as you can see, everything is written.
0:28:54 > 0:28:58Various signals here. Come down here, I think that is a railway.
0:28:58 > 0:29:01And then something was flat out after a signal like that.
0:29:01 > 0:29:03All these things have an interpretation
0:29:03 > 0:29:06which he then gave me through hand signals.
0:29:06 > 0:29:11Like, slower, and then much slower, right, left, humpbacked bridge,
0:29:11 > 0:29:14- all sorts of different hand signals. - What was "go faster"?
0:29:14 > 0:29:18- Go faster was like that. That meant you're flat out.- It's beautiful.
0:29:18 > 0:29:20- It worked.- Yeah.
0:29:20 > 0:29:24But it was the driving seat I wanted to occupy.
0:29:28 > 0:29:32OK. Right. So, we're in first.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35- Shall I take it out? - Yeah, take it out.
0:29:45 > 0:29:48- GEARS CRUNCH - Sorry!- All right.
0:29:52 > 0:29:53Ooh, yes, I see.
0:29:53 > 0:29:57'Driving a racing legend is nerve-racking, to say the least,
0:29:57 > 0:30:00'but behind the wheel of such a beautiful car,
0:30:00 > 0:30:02'my confidence started to grow.'
0:30:02 > 0:30:08I never imagined a scenario like this in my life.
0:30:08 > 0:30:11That doesn't even begin to include you as my passenger
0:30:11 > 0:30:14or the road that we're on!
0:30:16 > 0:30:18Look at this scenery!
0:30:18 > 0:30:22Can you imagine a life much better for a kid of 18
0:30:22 > 0:30:26driving all around Europe, racing every weekend
0:30:26 > 0:30:29and being able to meet the crumpet and have fun?
0:30:29 > 0:30:32Wonderful life.
0:30:32 > 0:30:34I've got no problems with it at all.
0:30:36 > 0:30:38Now I understand why the Mille Miglia
0:30:38 > 0:30:42is without a doubt Stirling Moss's most impressive victory.
0:30:44 > 0:30:46With the help of Jenks and his bog roll,
0:30:46 > 0:30:51he drove for 10 hours, averaging almost 100mph.
0:30:51 > 0:30:56It's that kind of superhuman feat that turns drivers into legends.
0:30:56 > 0:31:01- Are you all right?- Yeah, I'm all right. No problem. No problems.
0:31:01 > 0:31:04- I crossed myself a couple of times! - Thank you, sir!
0:31:10 > 0:31:13'A happy homecoming for the 25-year-old racing driver
0:31:13 > 0:31:16'who, experts predict, is a future world champion.'
0:31:16 > 0:31:20Having conquered Italy in a sports car, Stirling returned home
0:31:20 > 0:31:23determined to make a name for himself in Formula One.
0:31:24 > 0:31:29At that point, no British driver had ever won a Grand Prix on home soil.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32'Moss, with fastest practice lap is in pole position,
0:31:32 > 0:31:34'with Fangio next to him.
0:31:34 > 0:31:38'And Hawthorn is in an unusual position for him, the fifth row.'
0:31:44 > 0:31:46'Here we are, we listen to them come by.
0:31:46 > 0:31:50'Here's Stirling Moss in the Mercedes, there's Fangio...'
0:31:50 > 0:31:53When it came to Formula One, Stirling would always be
0:31:53 > 0:31:56in the shadow of his mentor, the great Fangio.
0:31:56 > 0:32:00'In the lead, Fangio is pushed by Moss, who sits right on his tail.'
0:32:00 > 0:32:02But in front of a home crowd,
0:32:02 > 0:32:05the understudy had the drive of his life.
0:32:05 > 0:32:08'Through Melling Crossing goes Fangio, with Moss on his heels.'
0:32:08 > 0:32:09'Very close indeed together.'
0:32:09 > 0:32:11'Less than a quarter of a mile to go now,
0:32:11 > 0:32:13'as they come into Tatts Corner.'
0:32:13 > 0:32:15'And the crowds rise to greet Moss.
0:32:15 > 0:32:20'And Moss is waving Fangio up and they are going to go across the line,
0:32:20 > 0:32:23'giving the victory to Stirling Moss of Great Britain.'
0:32:23 > 0:32:26'For the first time in motoring history,
0:32:26 > 0:32:28'the British Grand Prix has been won by an Englishman.'
0:32:32 > 0:32:36At the age of 25, Stirling Moss had become a national hero.
0:32:38 > 0:32:43But he was about to be given a stark reminder that motor racing
0:32:43 > 0:32:46was the most deadly sport the world had ever seen.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53Moss calmly signing autographs while he waited for Fangio to bring
0:32:53 > 0:32:56the Mercedes in for his spell at the wheel.
0:32:56 > 0:32:59And just before 6.30, with two and a half hours gone,
0:32:59 > 0:33:03disaster struck in the worst motor racing accident in history.
0:33:10 > 0:33:16At Le Mans, one of Stirling's Mercedes team-mates was launched into the crowd.
0:33:16 > 0:33:19'In a few ghastly seconds, death wipes out whole families.
0:33:19 > 0:33:21'Levegh is killed before his wife's eyes
0:33:21 > 0:33:23'and some 70 spectators with him.'
0:33:23 > 0:33:26Stirling was lucky not to be involved,
0:33:26 > 0:33:29but the Mercedes dream was over.
0:33:29 > 0:33:32'The full list of casualties from the disaster is announced.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35'Stuttgart gives orders to Neubauer in the pit.
0:33:35 > 0:33:37'The two Mercedes are withdrawn from the race.'
0:33:37 > 0:33:42We pulled out at 4 o'clock in the morning with a three-lap lead on Jaguar.
0:33:42 > 0:33:44It wasn't going to bring anybody back.
0:33:44 > 0:33:45I don't know why he did that.
0:33:45 > 0:33:48So I couldn't win Le Mans.
0:33:48 > 0:33:51But not winning was the least of Stirling's worries.
0:33:51 > 0:33:55Soon after the disaster, Mercedes retired from motorsport.
0:33:59 > 0:34:03'Mr Tony Vandervell, ex-racing driver and wealthy industrialist,
0:34:03 > 0:34:07'produced a prototype of the Vanwall Formula One car.'
0:34:07 > 0:34:11Stirling was without a Formula One team, but back in Britain,
0:34:11 > 0:34:16a car was finally being produced that might challenge the Italian giants.
0:34:17 > 0:34:19Tony Vandervell always expressed
0:34:19 > 0:34:23his racing ambition as being "to beat those bloody red cars".
0:34:23 > 0:34:29'And so, the Vanwall and its engine were slowly and expensively developed.
0:34:29 > 0:34:33'A masterpiece of engine design, in a sturdy, yet light chassis.'
0:34:34 > 0:34:3718 months after the Le Mans disaster,
0:34:37 > 0:34:40Stirling signed up to lead the all-British team.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43'The Vanwalls, resplendent in their British racing green
0:34:43 > 0:34:45'are manoeuvred into their positions,
0:34:45 > 0:34:48'comfortingly near the front of the red machines from Italy.'
0:34:48 > 0:34:52We had a car in British racing green
0:34:52 > 0:34:56that could beat the others, and so it was a fantastic thing.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59But would it be the same old story?
0:34:59 > 0:35:02The best of the British was the Vanwall,
0:35:02 > 0:35:05but it was unreliable and it wasn't good enough.
0:35:07 > 0:35:11But it was getting closer and closer and closer to Ferrari and Maserati.
0:35:15 > 0:35:20And then came the British Grand Prix at Aintree in 1957.
0:35:20 > 0:35:23The team were desperate to score their first win on home soil
0:35:23 > 0:35:28and so Vandervell hatched a plan that would be inconceivable today.
0:35:28 > 0:35:31York asked Tony Brooks about his injured leg.
0:35:31 > 0:35:34In those days, drivers could swap cars mid-race,
0:35:34 > 0:35:38so Stirling's injured team-mate agreed to hand his over if required.
0:35:38 > 0:35:40I'd had
0:35:40 > 0:35:45my Aston Martin accident at Le Mans just over three weeks beforehand.
0:35:45 > 0:35:48I was in a pretty sorry state.
0:35:48 > 0:35:52I said, if anything happens to your car, Stirling, you take my car over.
0:35:52 > 0:35:56'Now the moment of drama. Engines revving, the air shaking.
0:35:56 > 0:35:58'They're off!'
0:36:00 > 0:36:04This really set the scene for an extraordinary motor race.
0:36:04 > 0:36:07'Now begins a grim race by Moss against the watch.'
0:36:09 > 0:36:11Stirling built up a huge lead,
0:36:11 > 0:36:14but then the inevitable happened.
0:36:15 > 0:36:20My car did have a pipe go, injector pipe, so I went back to the pits.
0:36:20 > 0:36:22'Team manager York flags Tony Brooks.
0:36:22 > 0:36:25'On lap 27, in he comes.'
0:36:25 > 0:36:27Tony sort of acknowledged it
0:36:27 > 0:36:30and I think he was quite relieved because he was in considerable pain.
0:36:30 > 0:36:34And anyway, we dragged him out of it, and I jumped in.
0:36:34 > 0:36:36But by taking Brooks' car,
0:36:36 > 0:36:40Moss also took his position in the race and so dropped from first
0:36:40 > 0:36:42down to ninth place.
0:36:42 > 0:36:44'Moss is away in 12 seconds flat.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47'And he's knocking out the fastest laps of the day,
0:36:47 > 0:36:48'lap after lap.
0:36:49 > 0:36:51'Moss has won back half a minute.'
0:36:51 > 0:36:56Everybody's heart is sort of beating faster and faster, palms sweaty.
0:36:58 > 0:37:03Against all the odds, he clawed back his lead and made racing history.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09'And at last, after so many years of hopes and disappointments,
0:37:09 > 0:37:11'a British driver in a British car...'
0:37:11 > 0:37:14He won the British Grand Prix in a British car as a British driver.
0:37:14 > 0:37:17And that was the first time that had happened.
0:37:17 > 0:37:20It subsequently led, I think, to inspiring other designers
0:37:20 > 0:37:23to believe that they could win in British cars.
0:37:23 > 0:37:25It was a fantastic achievement.
0:37:25 > 0:37:28And the Vanwall was the car that he did it in.
0:37:31 > 0:37:33To help me understand how ground-breaking
0:37:33 > 0:37:35the Vanwall was,
0:37:35 > 0:37:39I'm going to achieve a lifelong dream and drive one.
0:37:39 > 0:37:43For this I'll need help from an expert, in a car that's been made
0:37:43 > 0:37:45to handle just like a Vanwall.
0:37:47 > 0:37:52Patrick, one of the troubles with a Vanwall was that it used to understeer a lot.
0:37:52 > 0:37:54So we've set this Caterham up to understeer,
0:37:54 > 0:37:57so you can get a feel for what might happen.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59If you add too much power,
0:37:59 > 0:38:03you're just going to push the nose wider and wider and run out of road
0:38:03 > 0:38:06and then there's going to be a very expensive and embarrassing moment.
0:38:06 > 0:38:09# You shake my nerves and you rattle my brain... #
0:38:09 > 0:38:11When cornering, the Vanwall would slide out
0:38:11 > 0:38:15to the edge of the track - known in racing circles as "understeer".
0:38:15 > 0:38:16Wow!
0:38:19 > 0:38:22- Turning in.- Understeer, understeer!
0:38:22 > 0:38:25Oh, I'm running out of road!
0:38:25 > 0:38:28I don't want to put a Vanwall in the ditch.
0:38:37 > 0:38:40What I was doing there, was giving it that flick, to deliberately
0:38:40 > 0:38:44get the rear to break away, to eradicate the understeer.
0:38:44 > 0:38:48- Yes.- But I don't think that's something you should try to do.
0:38:48 > 0:38:53The Vanwall I'll be driving is a priceless museum piece,
0:38:53 > 0:38:56so it was absolutely crucial I got this right.
0:38:56 > 0:38:57TYRES SCREECH
0:38:57 > 0:39:02- Ooh.- You're turning very early, that's...- Too early?- Yeah. Which is what pushed us out.
0:39:02 > 0:39:05But Tiff persuaded me it would be easier
0:39:05 > 0:39:07if I really put my foot down.
0:39:07 > 0:39:10Flags out, turn, power, power, power! Hold it, hold it!
0:39:13 > 0:39:17Now you're going faster, you've got to ease off the throttle
0:39:17 > 0:39:19- to get the opposite lock on.- Yes.
0:39:19 > 0:39:23No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't get it right.
0:39:23 > 0:39:26You won't make it, we're in the field, we're in the field.
0:39:26 > 0:39:28That's understeer, that's the field.
0:39:33 > 0:39:34Sorry about that.
0:39:37 > 0:39:39But after a couple of hours of practice,
0:39:39 > 0:39:41I finally started to get the hang of it.
0:39:45 > 0:39:50Down to third gear, turn in, and now power, power! Feel that.
0:39:50 > 0:39:53And now lift off from here.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58You've got it, you've got it, you've got it! Yeah!
0:40:04 > 0:40:06Go, go! Yay!
0:40:09 > 0:40:10The lesson was over,
0:40:10 > 0:40:13but the exercise wasn't academic.
0:40:13 > 0:40:16Now...I'm going to drive the real thing.
0:40:17 > 0:40:21There's another challenge when the Vanwall gets delivered.
0:40:21 > 0:40:23And this time,
0:40:23 > 0:40:27I'm going to be under the watchful eye of another driver, Sir Stirling.
0:40:27 > 0:40:31I'm a little apprehensive, but I'm sure that there will yet again
0:40:31 > 0:40:34be another steep learning curve on this.
0:40:34 > 0:40:38It will be a childhood fantasy.
0:40:38 > 0:40:43'The British Vanwall cars were driven by Stirling Moss. Could they repeat their Aintree success?'
0:40:43 > 0:40:48The next season, the Vanwall team went on to win the first ever Formula One
0:40:48 > 0:40:51constructors championship.
0:40:51 > 0:40:53'And the first man to congratulate the winner
0:40:53 > 0:40:55'was Britain's proudest father.'
0:40:55 > 0:40:57Stirling was on a high -
0:40:57 > 0:40:59and he'd fallen in love, too.
0:41:01 > 0:41:03But some things never change.
0:41:03 > 0:41:06'The Mosses are honeymooning in Holland, but only for four days.
0:41:06 > 0:41:10'Stirling has to be back in London to judge the Miss World contest.'
0:41:10 > 0:41:13Can you imagine getting married to your wife, and saying, "Yeah,
0:41:13 > 0:41:15"I know the honeymoon's important, sweetheart,
0:41:15 > 0:41:17"but I want to go back to look at some women in bikinis
0:41:17 > 0:41:19"and work out who's the best-looking."
0:41:19 > 0:41:23Back on the track, Stirling yearned for more than just team success.
0:41:23 > 0:41:27In 1958 he wanted that elusive drivers' title.
0:41:29 > 0:41:33At that time, the drivers felt that I was the guy to beat.
0:41:33 > 0:41:38When the times go up, they'd say, "well, what did Moss do?"
0:41:38 > 0:41:40It ended up, the world championship,
0:41:40 > 0:41:42being fought out between Stirling
0:41:42 > 0:41:45and Mike Hawthorn.
0:41:45 > 0:41:49To be able to beat Mike was terribly important to me.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52If a foreigner beats me, I don't feel so bad.
0:41:52 > 0:41:54But if it's an Englishman, I feel far worse.
0:41:54 > 0:41:58That season, he won more races than any other driver.
0:41:58 > 0:42:01And in Portugal, the world title seemed in the bag
0:42:01 > 0:42:05when Hawthorn was disqualified for receiving a push start.
0:42:06 > 0:42:09But then Stirling did an amazing thing.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12I went up and said, this is quite wrong.
0:42:12 > 0:42:15I said, look, you can't disqualify him for that, he wasn't on the racetrack.
0:42:15 > 0:42:19His impeccable sportsmanship handed Hawthorn a single point.
0:42:19 > 0:42:22All he needed to win the world championship.
0:42:22 > 0:42:25'Stirling Moss, winner of the Grand Prix in his British Vanwall,
0:42:25 > 0:42:28'had failed to be the first British champion by one point.'
0:42:31 > 0:42:34That cost me one world title. So what?
0:42:34 > 0:42:37What I wanted more than anything really,
0:42:37 > 0:42:39I think, was the drivers' respect.
0:42:39 > 0:42:42'Lewis-Evans is pushed off in the Vanwall.'
0:42:42 > 0:42:44To make matters worse, the youngest member
0:42:44 > 0:42:48of the Vanwall team was killed in the last race of the season.
0:42:49 > 0:42:54Team manager Tony Vandervell decided to pull out of Formula One.
0:42:54 > 0:42:59He never really got over the death of Stuart Lewis-Evans.
0:42:59 > 0:43:04And I think Tony Vandervell somehow felt partly responsible
0:43:04 > 0:43:07because poor Stuart was driving one of his cars.
0:43:09 > 0:43:12After yet another disappointment,
0:43:12 > 0:43:16Stirling's attitude towards racing started to change.
0:43:16 > 0:43:19Stirling Moss, possibly the world's greatest racing driver.
0:43:19 > 0:43:21Let's watch him relaxing with a miniature track.
0:43:21 > 0:43:25Rival in this grim struggle is his wife, Katie.
0:43:25 > 0:43:29'Stirling Moss rockets into sight with Bruce McLaren right on his tail.'
0:43:29 > 0:43:32# You keep a-knockin' but you can't come in... #
0:43:32 > 0:43:36Instead of the pressure of a top team, Stirling decided to drive
0:43:36 > 0:43:39for his friend Rob Walker, the whisky tycoon.
0:43:39 > 0:43:41The ethos was very much,
0:43:41 > 0:43:45you race hard today and then you party tonight.
0:43:45 > 0:43:46'Moss, the master.'
0:43:46 > 0:43:48Stirling was very happy driving for Rob Walker.
0:43:48 > 0:43:50The problem was, they weren't
0:43:50 > 0:43:52a works car manufacturer,
0:43:52 > 0:43:56they were using a car that they had bought from someone else.
0:43:57 > 0:43:59Nevertheless, Stirling Moss is in the lead.
0:44:01 > 0:44:04Without the support of a manufacturer,
0:44:04 > 0:44:07Stirling's cars had a tendency to break down.
0:44:07 > 0:44:09'Moss was soon in the lead, and might well have won,
0:44:09 > 0:44:12'but transmission trouble made him retire.'
0:44:12 > 0:44:14'Moss went pretty well until he had gearbox trouble.'
0:44:14 > 0:44:18'Out of luck this season, a faulty clutch put Stirling out of the race.'
0:44:20 > 0:44:24He finished third in the world championship three years on the trot,
0:44:24 > 0:44:29but failing to win a title did nothing to dent his reputation.
0:44:29 > 0:44:32I think the public appreciated just how artistic
0:44:32 > 0:44:37he was in the delicacy of his driving, the way he held the wheel.
0:44:37 > 0:44:41The British public love an underdog.
0:44:41 > 0:44:44Every now and then, Stirling would win against all the odds
0:44:44 > 0:44:47and at Monaco he came out on top when he lined up
0:44:47 > 0:44:52against the Ferraris in Rob Walker's aging British Lotus.
0:44:53 > 0:44:56He was driving an older chassis.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59It just puts into perspective what a remarkable, remarkable drive
0:44:59 > 0:45:03that was from Stirling on that sunny afternoon in Monte Carlo.
0:45:03 > 0:45:06'On the 13th lap, Moss goes into the lead,
0:45:06 > 0:45:08'despite the efforts of the far more powerful Ferraris.'
0:45:11 > 0:45:14'With the entire Ferrari team in full cry behind him, round and
0:45:14 > 0:45:18'round the classic Monaco circuit, he drives the race of his life.'
0:45:24 > 0:45:26Stirling trounced the red Italians so convincingly,
0:45:26 > 0:45:29it made Enzo Ferrari take note.
0:45:31 > 0:45:35After a decade of separation, Stirling was invited to Maranello
0:45:35 > 0:45:37for a meeting with the Old Man.
0:45:41 > 0:45:44He called me up and said, would I go and see him down in Modena.
0:45:45 > 0:45:48Ferrari met me and he said, "Look, will you drive for me?"
0:45:49 > 0:45:52He said to Stirling, just tell me what you need...
0:45:53 > 0:45:56..in a car, and I'll build it for you.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59And that was how desperate he was to have Moss in one of his cars.
0:45:59 > 0:46:03And amazingly, Enzo Ferrari, the Old Man himself,
0:46:03 > 0:46:07agreed that he would sell a car to Rob Walker,
0:46:07 > 0:46:10for Rob Walker to run in their colours, not even in Ferrari red,
0:46:10 > 0:46:14and for Stirling to drive that car in the world championship.
0:46:18 > 0:46:21Very soon, I'll get to drive one of Stirling's cars
0:46:21 > 0:46:25but first I'm at the Ferrari factory, where he finally
0:46:25 > 0:46:30made peace with Enzo, putting the world title within his grasp.
0:46:30 > 0:46:35Enzo would have had the best driver in the world at that time
0:46:35 > 0:46:38- in what should have been the best car in the world.- Yes.
0:46:39 > 0:46:43What do you think would have resulted from that combination?
0:46:43 > 0:46:46Well, I think, hopefully, a world championship.
0:46:46 > 0:46:50- Well, more than one world championship.- That didn't happen.- No.
0:46:50 > 0:46:51Because of the crash.
0:46:54 > 0:46:59Stirling never drove his Ferrari, because in a pre-season race he was
0:46:59 > 0:47:02involved in an accident that ended his career.
0:47:02 > 0:47:05How it happened remains a mystery.
0:47:07 > 0:47:11I was passing in a place I would never consider passing under normal conditions.
0:47:11 > 0:47:15And I was miles behind it, so there was no reason...
0:47:15 > 0:47:17I wasn't dicing for the last corner of the last lap.
0:47:22 > 0:47:26His crash was a national disaster
0:47:26 > 0:47:30which...produced an atmosphere
0:47:30 > 0:47:32of national anguish.
0:47:34 > 0:47:37Not Stirling Moss. It didn't happen to him.
0:47:37 > 0:47:39He was too good to crash.
0:47:39 > 0:47:43To this day, Stirling believes the car was to blame
0:47:43 > 0:47:47and that the crash wouldn't have happened in his Ferrari.
0:47:47 > 0:47:51The one thing I respect Ferrari above anything else is no driver
0:47:51 > 0:47:56that I know of has ever died because of mechanical failure on a car.
0:47:56 > 0:47:59If the car had only arrived in England early enough
0:47:59 > 0:48:02so I could have raced it at Goodwood, I wouldn't have had my crash,
0:48:02 > 0:48:05and it would have been a wonderful relationship.
0:48:05 > 0:48:09- It could have been perfect. - It could have been.
0:48:09 > 0:48:10But it wasn't.
0:48:10 > 0:48:14Stirling was rushed to hospital as the nation feared for his life.
0:48:14 > 0:48:17Oh, all racing drivers kill themselves -
0:48:17 > 0:48:20that was the public attitude. And now it was Moss's turn.
0:48:21 > 0:48:23The whole nation stopped,
0:48:23 > 0:48:27basically waiting to find out what was going to happen.
0:48:27 > 0:48:30We're hoping that he will keep going on slowly.
0:48:30 > 0:48:35I mean, we can't expect miracles to happen. It's got to be a slow job.
0:48:35 > 0:48:38Are you going to try and persuade him to stop racing after this?
0:48:38 > 0:48:43I shall ask him, yes. I haven't before, but this time, I shall.
0:48:43 > 0:48:44Definitely.
0:48:46 > 0:48:51Stirling woke from a month-long coma paralysed down one side of his body.
0:48:51 > 0:48:56But the nation's relief turned to fear that he may never return to the track.
0:48:56 > 0:48:59Quite honestly, I have too much pride, I suppose,
0:48:59 > 0:49:03to want to go in racing and find myself trailing round at the back.
0:49:03 > 0:49:07If you find you're punch-drunk, I reckon you get out of it.
0:49:07 > 0:49:10He had suffered serious brain damage which he would
0:49:10 > 0:49:15take years to recover from, but that didn't stop the media asking
0:49:15 > 0:49:17the same old question.
0:49:17 > 0:49:19How soon do you think you'll be back on the track again?
0:49:19 > 0:49:21That depends on the doctors, quite honestly.
0:49:21 > 0:49:25He didn't get well for a very long time after that.
0:49:25 > 0:49:28And until he was on form,
0:49:28 > 0:49:30it was ridiculous for anybody
0:49:30 > 0:49:32to think that he could test drive.
0:49:32 > 0:49:35Any fool could have looked at him and said,
0:49:35 > 0:49:37you know, why are you doing this?
0:49:37 > 0:49:40The weight of expectation from the British public
0:49:40 > 0:49:44pushed Stirling into attempting a comeback way before he was ready.
0:49:47 > 0:49:49Just 12 months had passed
0:49:49 > 0:49:52when he made the biggest decision of his life.
0:49:52 > 0:49:55I came down here and I drove the car round
0:49:55 > 0:49:58for about three quarters of an hour.
0:49:58 > 0:50:00It dawned on me slowly, but very surely,
0:50:00 > 0:50:03that the things that I required had gone.
0:50:03 > 0:50:05What was second nature to me originally
0:50:05 > 0:50:08was now a conscious effort.
0:50:08 > 0:50:10A lot of things had changed.
0:50:10 > 0:50:13I felt it would be, therefore, unwise to continue racing.
0:50:14 > 0:50:16If the crash hadn't happened,
0:50:16 > 0:50:20and the Ferrari had been delivered,
0:50:20 > 0:50:25and you had won maybe, in '62, the world championship...
0:50:25 > 0:50:27- Yeah.- And perhaps the next year,
0:50:27 > 0:50:30for how long do you think you would have continued to race Formula One?
0:50:30 > 0:50:34I had hoped that I would race until I was well into my 50s.
0:50:34 > 0:50:35My whole life would have changed.
0:50:35 > 0:50:38I was forced out of racing at the age of just 32
0:50:38 > 0:50:41and I didn't know what the hell to do. It's a shame,
0:50:41 > 0:50:45because I think my life could have been a lot more rewarding.
0:50:45 > 0:50:46I wish so, too.
0:50:49 > 0:50:52The more time I spent with Stirling, the more
0:50:52 > 0:50:54I came to an unlikely conclusion -
0:50:54 > 0:50:58by ending his career, the accident was in fact a blessing.
0:51:00 > 0:51:05You know that there are people who believe
0:51:05 > 0:51:08that that crash at Goodwood in 1962
0:51:08 > 0:51:11actually saved your life?
0:51:11 > 0:51:14Yes, but they don't know the situation.
0:51:14 > 0:51:18They're therefore assuming that I'm going to have another crash.
0:51:18 > 0:51:21Quite honestly, if you look back over the whole of my career,
0:51:21 > 0:51:24I did not have any serious crash that was my fault.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27Why should I have another accident?
0:51:27 > 0:51:32Odds. The more races that you're in, the odds become shorter and shorter.
0:51:32 > 0:51:35And the more experienced you get.
0:51:35 > 0:51:37Do you think you're indestructible?
0:51:37 > 0:51:41I think that with a Ferrari as my car,
0:51:41 > 0:51:44I think that we would have won quite a lot.
0:51:51 > 0:51:56It has turned out to be getting to know an extraordinary individual.
0:51:57 > 0:52:00This is a man who said that he did what he did
0:52:00 > 0:52:04not in spite of the danger,
0:52:04 > 0:52:07but because of the danger!
0:52:07 > 0:52:11I have resisted making connections
0:52:11 > 0:52:15and comparisons between my life and career and yours
0:52:15 > 0:52:18because this has been about you, and not about me.
0:52:18 > 0:52:24- Yeah.- But it has been, what I have learnt about a man of passion
0:52:24 > 0:52:29and ambition and feeling and self-belief
0:52:29 > 0:52:32that has so affected me
0:52:32 > 0:52:37and I shall take all that and put it into my life and my career.
0:52:37 > 0:52:40It's a much overused phrase,
0:52:40 > 0:52:43but you are an inspiration to me.
0:52:43 > 0:52:47'We don't have, in our country,'
0:52:47 > 0:52:50the title national treasure. But if we had it,
0:52:50 > 0:52:54the first to receive it should be Sir Stirling Moss.
0:52:59 > 0:53:02There remains just one thing for me to do.
0:53:04 > 0:53:0955 years after the Vanwall's big victory, I'm on my way to Aintree -
0:53:09 > 0:53:12where the tarmac track still exists.
0:53:14 > 0:53:16I want to re-live the moment
0:53:16 > 0:53:19an all-British team won a British Grand Prix -
0:53:19 > 0:53:22the start of Formula One as we know it.
0:53:22 > 0:53:25How often does anybody get an opportunity to drive,
0:53:25 > 0:53:30on the same racecourse that Stirling actually won the British Grand Prix
0:53:30 > 0:53:33in the car that he was driving?
0:53:33 > 0:53:35Now Stirling and his team-mate Tony are going to
0:53:35 > 0:53:38guide me through that most memorable race.
0:53:40 > 0:53:45Somewhere here, there is a Vanwall waiting for me.
0:53:47 > 0:53:51I shall get my first sight of it and my first touch of it...
0:53:51 > 0:53:52um, climbing into it.
0:54:05 > 0:54:08Yes, there we are. Fine.
0:54:09 > 0:54:12There we are, this is the beautiful Vanwall.
0:54:12 > 0:54:17- This is beautiful.- You are allowed to touch it, if you want.
0:54:17 > 0:54:20- Oh, Lord, I'm not sure that I should!- You'll be getting in there!
0:54:22 > 0:54:23I found it a very difficult car to drive.
0:54:23 > 0:54:28- Yes, that's right, it was rather heavy, rather ponderous.- Yes.
0:54:28 > 0:54:30Look upon it as a blind date.
0:54:30 > 0:54:34You never know what you've got till you get in, you know?!
0:54:38 > 0:54:40I'm back in my comfort zone at this moment
0:54:40 > 0:54:44because I'm putting on a costume, and that's something I'm used to.
0:54:44 > 0:54:49Because what I want to do is enjoy myself.
0:54:49 > 0:54:52I'm probably not going to have a day like this again.
0:54:57 > 0:55:00Here's a helmet. Look after that, please. It's mine.
0:55:00 > 0:55:02- This is the original? - It's the original.
0:55:02 > 0:55:06- It's lightweight. These are made for polo.- Polo?- So don't break it.
0:55:06 > 0:55:08Good luck. Enjoy yourself.
0:55:08 > 0:55:14With Stirling's helmet, gloves, and his blessing, I was going to follow in his footsteps.
0:55:15 > 0:55:16I'm ready, yeah.
0:55:31 > 0:55:33ENGINE STALLS
0:55:33 > 0:55:36- A few more... Sorry. - Has it stopped?- No, it's stopped.
0:55:36 > 0:55:40You don't just jump in a Vanwall and go shopping.
0:55:40 > 0:55:42It is quite a complicated thing.
0:55:50 > 0:55:52INAUDIBLE
0:56:02 > 0:56:04'The flag is up.'
0:56:10 > 0:56:11'They're off!'
0:56:15 > 0:56:17He's gone!
0:56:17 > 0:56:20My second attempt was better, and as I entered
0:56:20 > 0:56:24the first straight, it felt like the Vanwall was beginning to fly.
0:56:30 > 0:56:33It was hard to control, it wasn't very comfortable,
0:56:33 > 0:56:37but this beautiful car does have one major attribute -
0:56:37 > 0:56:40it goes really, really fast.
0:56:40 > 0:56:44'Now winding it up as he roars on.
0:56:44 > 0:56:47'On past the railway carriages,
0:56:47 > 0:56:49'now past the huge crowd on the embankment.
0:56:49 > 0:56:52'Under the giant scoreboard for the last time in this race,
0:56:52 > 0:56:55'through the Melling Crossing...'
0:56:55 > 0:56:58'With people rising in their seats in the grandstand,
0:56:58 > 0:57:03'ready to proclaim a fine victory and a well-deserved victory.
0:57:03 > 0:57:07'Stirling Moss, coming by, waving to the crowds.
0:57:07 > 0:57:10'And Stirling Moss comes up to the finishing line
0:57:10 > 0:57:13'and the chequered flag drops as Stirling Moss wins
0:57:13 > 0:57:18'the British Grand Prix and indeed, this year, the European Grand Prix,
0:57:18 > 0:57:22'for that is the honour which is being bestowed upon England this year...'
0:57:22 > 0:57:24COMMENTARY FADES
0:57:26 > 0:57:29- Enjoy it?- Feels wonderful, Stirling.
0:57:29 > 0:57:32It feels absolutely brilliant.
0:57:34 > 0:57:38Oh, Lord! This beats the Enterprise any day!
0:57:38 > 0:57:40Exhilaration and satisfaction was...
0:57:40 > 0:57:42Well, let me just say, I will try and hold on to it
0:57:42 > 0:57:46till the day I die, if I can. Because it feels so good.
0:57:46 > 0:57:48Thank you for spending this time with me
0:57:48 > 0:57:51and giving me some of your hard-earned,
0:57:51 > 0:57:53long-earned experience.
0:57:53 > 0:57:56Because I consider it one of the great privileges of my life.
0:57:56 > 0:57:59I can't stop grinning!
0:58:00 > 0:58:05Perhaps my proudest feeling is that here it is, folks,
0:58:05 > 0:58:08I give it back to you. It's unharmed, untouched.
0:58:10 > 0:58:12And for this relief, much thanks!
0:58:21 > 0:58:25# I'm going to live till I die
0:58:25 > 0:58:28# I'm going to laugh 'stead of cry
0:58:28 > 0:58:32# I'm going to take the town and turn it upside down
0:58:32 > 0:58:36# I'm going to live live, live, live, live
0:58:38 > 0:58:43# Until I die! #