24 replies to this topic

[Allen Brown]

One is very well known and should give some clues to the others.

Here's a close-up of the faces.



I only know three of them and would be most interested if anyone can identify the other two.

Bonus points for the location and the date. If that's possible!

Allen

Edited by Allen Brown, 13 March 2013 - 16:07.

[dolomite]

The bloke with the beard and the hat is John Watson. No idea about the rest though!

[Allen Brown]

Bullseye. And in less than 30 minutes.

So with that clue, would anyone like to try for one of the others? Or maybe try for a rough date and a rough location? There's a very well-known surname among the other four.

Allen

[MCS]

3 x Crossle, with (in the right foreground) Leslie Drysdale.

At a guess, Kirkistown - but no idea when.

My God, my memory still works! Or does it?!!

MCS

[MCS]

Hang on, I'm wrong (I think) - is the other chap in the hat - i.e not Watson - Brian Nelson?

MCS

[Allen Brown]

TNF is truely amazing. Yes, it's Kirkistown but I'll never know how you got that!

And yes, that's John Crossle front left and Brian Nelson is indeed the other man in a hat. Leslie Drysdale could well be the man front right - that is the one name I didn't know.

So how about the man in the centre? The picture was contributed by his son.

Allen

[Mac Lark]

Marshall Watson per chance?

[David Beard]

I had this reponse from a gentleman to whom I had forwarded the photo...

Clockwise from bottom left we have John Crosslé (Crosslé Car Co), John Watson (his father Marshall passed away about 10 days ago), My father Mick Mooney (he sponsored Tommy Reid & Alan Rollinson ), Brian Nelson (handy FJ, Formula Libre & Rally driver) and finally Brian's mechanic I can't remember his first name but I think his surname was Truesdale.

[Coogar]

Yes, the venue is Kirkistown, circa 19678/9 - during Wattie's 'hat' period. The suspects are John of course, Mick Mooney, who backed Tommy Reid at the time and, later, Alan Rollinson. He was also a major patron of up and coming motor cyclists in N.Ireland. Brian Nelson, Leslie Drysdale - now boss of sometime FF constructors Mondiale and John Crossle.
Apart from Mick who sadly passed away some considerable time ago, all still appear at Kirkistown from time to time.
Nelson, who contested several F2 races in 1970/71 as well as sharing John L'Amies Porsche 910 in several long distance sports car races, doesn't look any older today.
Leslie Drysdale, whose brother Ian mechanic-ed for Brian, still runs a spares service for Mondiales - he also penned and built the original Barber-SAAB chassis - and builds some very good FF1600 engines as a sort of hobby.
John Crossle, although officially retired, concentrates on his highly effective trials cars these days.
I'd guess the picture was taken by Esler or Beatty Crawford, and I'd love to know what they were talking about !
Richard
Kirkistown manager

[Coogar]

Oh Lord, I'm slow in the mornings.........
Might it be possible to get hold of a copy of this picture for the Kirkistown archive ? Pictures from that period are pretty thin on the ground here.........

[Ted Walker]

There sitting on a Brabham front wheel if thats any help.So it could be from the period when John Watson raced his BT16 Twin Cam.

[Coogar]

Yes, the same BT16 mentioned in another thread when it was owned, as a F5000, by Dave Berry !
I see John Crossle only got the trailer spare to sit on !

[eldougo]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Allen Brown



________________________________________________
David Beard I had this reponse from a gentleman to whom I had forwarded the photo

Clockwise from bottom left we have John Crosslé (Crosslé Car Co), John Watson (his father Marshall passed away about 10 days ago), My father Mick Mooney (he sponsored Tommy Reid & Alan Rollinson ), Brian Nelson (handy FJ, Formula Libre & Rally driver) and finally Brian's mechanic I can't remember his first name but I think his surname was Truesdale.

[Dave Ware]

The photo is fantastic for other reasons. Look at these guys - nothing to sit on, insufficient overcoats, yet they all look like they're having the time of their lives. What a great way to go motor racing! Ahhh, the good old days.

Dave

[David Beard]

Originally posted by Allen Brown

And taken the same day?


(and I have more where that came from!)

[Ted Walker]

David any photographs of the BT16 ???? If so let me know or bring them to Stoneleigh this weekend.

[David Beard]

Originally posted by Ted Walker
David any photographs of the BT16 ???? If so let me know or bring them to Stoneleigh this weekend.

Can't help there, Ted, sorry.

But here are some more photos which connect with the others here. Names, anyone?

[Coogar]

Ted....(if you'll pardon the familiarity....)
The trio at the prizegiving.....Extreme right is Tommy Reid (still racing at 70 !) with Mick Mooney in the middle, but I can't identiry the one on the left - except that he ,ay just be some sort of MP/Minister presenting the prizes.
At bottom it's Mick Mooney and another of the founding fathers of present day Irish motorsport, Luke Duffy, who first raced and then entered FJ/twin cam Coopers and Lotuses. Among his proteges were Ken Fildes and Damien Magee. If the gearbox he's working on is the Cooper, as I think it is, it's the Magee car.
Pre-war Luke raced bikes and held the Phoenix Park m/c lap record in, I think, 1939.
All hearsay though........

[David Beard]

Originally posted by Coogar
The trio at the prizegiving.....Extreme right is Tommy Reid (still racing at 70 !) with Mick Mooney in the middle, but I can't identiry the one on the left - except that he ,ay just be some sort of MP/Minister presenting the prizes.

The photos came to me courtesy of Michael Mooney, Mick Mooney's son.

He says of the bloke on the left..."I believe this to be Keith Duckham (?)(as in Duckham's Oil.) with my father & Tommy Reid"

[Coogar]

David,
Keith Duckham ? For what it's worth, the Dickhams rep hereabouts at that time -67-70-ish was Keith Hancock, but he was younger than this chap. Still......
If you're in touch with Michael, give him my best. Haven't seen or heard of him for 20 years ! Is he still on this side of the Irish Sea or elsewhere on the globe......?
Richard Young

[Coogar]

Oooooh....Bad typing. Dickhams ? Was this a freudian slip or did I mean Duckhams ?

[David Beard]

Originally posted by Coogar
David,
Keith Duckham ? For what it's worth, the Dickhams rep hereabouts at that time -67-70-ish was Keith Hancock, but he was younger than this chap. Still......
If you're in touch with Michael, give him my best. Haven't seen or heard of him for 20 years ! Is he still on this side of the Irish Sea or elsewhere on the globe......?
Richard Young

He's following this thread. I'm trying to get him to post

[Andrew Fellowes]

I rang Mick Mooney when I bought BT30-8 to see if he had any objection to me painting the car in its original colour scheme.
‘Not at all’ was his reply ‘There are plenty of my old bikes spreading oil around Ireland still in my colours’.

I did enjoy my brief chat, I hadn’t seen a photo of Mick before, that smile fits the voice I talked to perfectly!

[claretdabbler]

Thanks Dave & Hi Richard. I got your email, Richard, so I'll be in touch & let you copy all my photos.
My brother in law has some great shots that old Mick gave him; we can have access to those too. I'll email you and we can discuss royalties
I would like to thank Allen for putting me in touch with Steve Mills who sent me great pics from the 60/70s. Thanks again Allen.
I'm awfy busy now so must go. Catch you later.

[David Beard]

Originally posted by claretdabbler
Thanks Dave & Hi Richard. I got your email, Richard, so I'll be in touch & let you copy all my photos.
My brother in law has some great shots that old Mick gave him; we can have access to those too. I'll email you and we can discuss royalties
I would like to thank Allen for putting me in touch with Steve Mills who sent me great pics from the 60/70s. Thanks again Allen.
I'm awfy busy now so must go. Catch you later.

Michael, good to see you here! Fancy putting a post on the introductions thread?