To his many admirers, Peter Collins was the ‘Golden Boy’ of 1950s British motor racing. His good looks’ friendly charm and supreme ability earned him an army of fans whose admiration only increased when Collins gifted the World Championship to Juan Manuel Fangio in 1956 – the year he joined Ferrari. Tragically, he lost his life at the Nurburgring just two weeks after winning 1958 British Grand Prix.

That year also saw his great friend and Ferrari teammate Mike Hawthorn become Britain’s first motor racing World Champion. In Grand Prix cars Hawthorn was exciting to watch, especially when duelling with Fangio, but his ability in sport and saloon cars also helped establish him as one of the all-time greats. Sadly the end of his career was tainted by personal disasters. In 1959, shortly after retiring, Hawthorn died in a road accident.