POSTBAG THE ND MAGNETTE OF H.B. SHAW I was pleased to read Jonathan Toulmin’s letter in the January issue of Safety Fast!, especially the bit about the North-West London Motor Club’s team trial on October 20 1934. I have the original publicity poster (copy printed here), which was issued by the MG Car Co after the MG Car Club’s success in winning this event with three P Types. The Kentish Border Car Club team of Magnettes driven by K. Roe and H.B. Shaw came second, and I own the ND Magnette (NA 0509) that H.B. Shaw used in this event. He also won the Best Performance as can be seen in the MG Car Co’s poster. This car was very successful in the hands of H.B. Shaw, winning the Alexander Trophy in the 1935 Kentish Border Car Club trial, and the Stafford Clark Cup in the same club’s February event, as well as silver medals in the MCC Gloucester, Exeter and Colmore trials. Also published is a photo of the car in the 1935 Gloucester trial – note his lady passenger with her fur coat! I first bought this car back in 1965 for £18.10s, and restored it and raced it in
the following years. When I got K3003 to restore in 1972, I sold the ND, which subsequently was re-restored by Len Goff. I bought it back from him in 1995, and competed in hill climbs and sprints up to ten years ago. So, the car has quite a long competition history. It is fitted with an original 1930s Marshall 87 side mounted supercharger, giving it a top speed of nearly 90mph – not bad for 1286cc! Phillip Bayne-Powell
FEBRUARY’S MYSTERY PHOTO It is indeed a photo of Victoria Worsley after the Double Twelve race at Brooklands held on May 9-10 1930 when she and her codriver, the Warwickshire cricketer Derek G. Foster, came seventh in Class G and 20th overall in the race. The Double Twelve race had been run successfully the previous year as an English version of the Le Mans 24 hour race but was run as two 12-hour events as the local residents did not like the noise at night! Victoria Worsley was the daughter of Sir William Worsley of Hovingham Hall in Yorkshire and brother of Yorkshire cricketer also William Worsley, who may be the reason that Derek Foster was her co-driver. She had started her motoring exploits trialling doing some minor racing events in a Jowett and had then trialled a new MG M type and entered that for the race. However, there was a ‘works’ built M type race car available and she was able to use that. It is not known if she bought it or was loaned it for the race. The following year she competed in an Austin Seven, and in later events in a Salmson and in an Amilcar. She married Roland King-Farlow who was an accountant and time keeper at Brooklands but they had no children. The story
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goes that he stored his timing clocks at Hovingham Hall during the war. Victoria later wrote a few novels and taught at a driving school. She attended many of the Brooklands reunions after the war and passed away in September 1984. She was the aunt of Katharine, Duchess of Kent, but no relation to Lucy Worsley of television fame and Curator at Historic Royal Palaces. Mike Dalby M type Registrar, Triple M Register
www.mgcc.co.uk
