Mike Hawthorn - Golden Boy  by Tom Bailey and Paul Skilleter

Mr Paul Keen is Queenswood's Health and Safety Officer, a role which has become even more vital and demanding since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. When Paul isn't consumed with implementing the latest Government guidance he is a 'Keen' car enthusiast. Here Paul tells us about the book he is currently reading.

Most people at Queenswood will have realised that cars are a passion of mine, from classic car ownership, completion car builds to classic restorations. Stage rallying and circuit racing as competitor, and in recent years assisting fiends with pit crew support, along with spectating at motorsport events, should ensure very little surprise that the book I am reviewing has a motorsport theme!

Widely regarded as having been one of Britain’s most talented and colourful racing drivers, this book records Mike Hawthorn's motor racing career and goes further by portraying his true character, very often through the recollections of those who knew and worked with him.

The result is a unique glimpse into the life and times of Britain’s first World Champion. Numerous new facts emerge in this reprinted version, along with many photographs and specially commissioned illustrations.

This book provides a fitting tribute to one of the finest drivers this country has ever produced.