Brooklands Weybridge Poster – Saturday 12th March 1938 First Meeting of the Season – E Morton 1938

Brooklands Weybridge Poster – Saturday 12th March 1938 First Meeting of the Season – E Morton 1938   Saturday March 12th 1938 was the date of the first race meeting of the season at the famous Brooklands racetrack. Between 12th March and 15th September Brooklands held ten race meetings and two motorcycle race meetings in 1938. This bright, eye-catching poster was created by the British artist E Morton in 1937. Morton was a well-known automotive artist in the 1930s and produced automotive adverts for car manufacturers including MG, Morris Issis and Daimler as well as covers for Autocar. The motor racing image was created as a template which over several months and years was reused many times, sometimes with changes to the background colour as well as the changes to the text to provide information for other events. We are aware of at least half a dozen versions that still exist. The earliest appears to have been created for the Easter Monday meeting in April 1933. The poster states that  Sir Malcolm Campbell would be driving the World’s Fastest Motor Car” the Bluebird… although it did include the caveat “circumstances permitting”. Another one was produced for the May 1st 1937 race meeting on Brookland’s new concrete road course designed by Malcolm Campbell. Another was created for the opening race meeting on March 11th 1939 and yet another was created for the August Bank Holiday meeting whose events included the British Trophy Race held over the Campbell Road Circuit. Morton’s stock template background depicts a tall racing driver preparing the wristband of his white motor racing suit. He is shown standing astride the Brooklands racetrack like an oversized bridge. Single-seater racing cars such as ERA’s E-Type, Austin Seven and MGs speed between the driver’s legs and around the circuit at Weybridge at high speed. For Brookland’s first race meeting of 1938, Morton’s image provides the background for the race details. The text reads Car & Motor Cycle Races on Track and Road Circuit. Start 2 pm. We always love it when vintage posters include ticket and or admission prices. e absolutely adore vintage posters that feature price tags, as they add an extra layer of nostalgia and take us on a journey back in time to compare prices from the past with those of today. There’s an additional charm in seeing how much things used to cost and how the value of money has changed over the years. This Brooklands Motor Racing poster is just one perfect example as it includes comprehensive information on entry prices. The poster explains that admission to the March 1938 meeting cost 5/- or 25p. Children were admitted for just 3/- or 15p. Tickets to transfer to the paddock area were ten shillings for adults and five shillings for children. It cost 2/6 to leave your car on the official car park or a further 5/- to park on the course. The poster also explains that combined rail and admission tickets could be purchased at Southern Railway stations. It goes on to add the “Bools of five 5/- Admission Tickets (transferable) are available at reduced prices of £1 (incl. tax) and are obtainable from the Secretary, Brooklands Motor Course, Weybridge. In bold, yellow lettering on a black panel at the foot of the Brooklands Poster the wording signs off with the phrase “The Right Crowd and No Crowding. The original poster was pcommissioned by the British Automobile Racing Club, the Brooklands race organisers. It was originally printed att 76 x 51 cm by BCM/GRL. The British Automobile Racing Club is one of the biggest motorsport organisations in the United Kingdom, with a rich and illustrious history that spans more than 100 years. The club was formed in 1912 as The Cyclecar Club, which grew quickly as it organised events at Brooklands along with rallies and touring trials on open roads. In 1919, following World War One, the decline of motorcyclists led to a change of name to the Junior Car Club. Immediate success followed with membership growing and regional centres being formed, all by 1921. In that same year, the Junior Car Club organised the first long-distance race to be staged in Britain – a 200-mile encounter at Brooklands which was ultimately won by Henry Seagrave. Today, the BARC is responsible for organising more than 35 championships and upwards of 60 race meetings each year – and the path to the present day as been an iconic one. After the Second World War Brooklands as a venue was no more and the Junior Car Club amalgamated with the Brooklands Automobile Racing Club. Come 1949 the Club changed its name to the British Automobile Racing Club and took up residence at Goodwood Circuit, its new home.