25 replies to this topic

[Alan Cox]

Former MG Midget and Morgan racer, garage owner, writer of great ads in Motor Sport, one of the founders of Motor Sport Vision and much, much more, John Britten has died after a long illness. A tribute here by Jonathan Palmer http://www.motorspor...asp?NewsID=5180

Edited by Alan Cox, 26 November 2009 - 18:36.

[RTH]

Oh....sad news indeed.
I used to live just a few miles up the A1 from Arkley and as a 17year old would often drive up to John Britten Garages on a Saturday afternoon just to look around that open air expanse of exotic and highly desirable sports cars he always had on offer...and nobody ever bothered you !
He did brilliant highly readable magazine adverts, full of fun and enthusiasm.
He was a highly accomplished club driver in his own right in SS1800 a very quick MG Midget along with team member Mrs Gabrielle Konig He developed and produced the Midget based 'Arkley SS' ( some years later I owned one myself). They were Morgan dealers, I believe he also had premises in Moscow road London. Had a Camera business and went on to be highly successful in a computer business as well. Then as joint owner of the Brands Hatch group of motor racing circuits MSV.
Great bloke and a real asset to motor sport and sportscar motoring in general. He will certainly be missed.


The Arkley SS http://www.arkleyss.com/

Edited by RTH, 26 November 2009 - 20:22.

[David Force]

Very sad, and I would have to say in the last few months we have been reeling in motor sport circles with so many passing all too soon.

I found John to be a perfect gentleman and great enthusiast for all types of motor sport.

Probably, like many on TNF, despite John's many achievements, I remember him best driving the wild Midget at Brands. Great days.

They must be assembling a heck of a grid up there !

Thoughts go to his family, and Jonathan Palmer and his team.

[sterling49]

Very sad, and I would have to say in the last few months we have been reeling in motor sport circles with so many passing all too soon.

I found John to be a perfect gentleman and great enthusiast for all types of motor sport.

Probably, like many on TNF, despite John's many achievements, I remember him best driving the wild Midget at Brands. Great days.

They must be assembling a heck of a grid up there !

Thoughts go to his family, and Jonathan Palmer and his team.

A sad day, like David, I used to watch John pedal SS1800, that indecently fast Midget, almost on a weekly basis.

[elansprint72]

Sad news.

I remember John's sometimes excruciatingly awful poems at the start of his adverts in Motor Sport.

"If by the sports-car bug you're bitten, take a trip down to John Britten" was one of the better ones, and from Jan 72:

"If you are a sports-car boffin, we'll never sell you a mobile coffin".


They got worse; much worse.


RIP John.

[Giraffe]

At the last meeting at Baldock, we were discussing John and his fab ads, and saying how he was the real power behind MSV fronted by Jonathan Palmer. What a shame to lose both him and Tom Wheatcroft within a month, two great visionaries.

[sterling49]

I am surprised that there are so few posts on this thread, John contributed such a lot to our sport, and like Tony said, he was a great visionary. As a youngster, I had no idea how he would go on to shape the tracks that I loved and the world of Motor sport so very much. Those ads were just great to read, even if I could not afford the hardware he was selling, and unlike Richard, I was not near enough to visit and drool. Thank you John. R.I.P.

[RTH]

I am surprised that there are so few posts on this thread, John contributed such a lot to our sport,.............. Those ads were just great to read, even if I could not afford the hardware he was selling, and unlike Richard, I was not near enough to visit and drool.

Yes I am too Sterling, John's heroic weekly exploits were an inspiration to many of us to take up motor racing, and the must read latest report of the goings on in leafy Arkley were eagerly anticipated.

This is John's own ( I'm sure he would not mind ) much used publicity photo of Gabrielle Konig they were usually in the same race in identical cars



John made a major contribution to the popularity of club racing.

[John Ginger]

Very sad news

My condolences to John's family and friends

Thank-you, you did so much for our sport

[Gav Astill]

Sad news.

I remember John's sometimes excruciatingly awful poems at the start of his adverts in Motor Sport.

"If by the sports-car bug you're bitten, take a trip down to John Britten" was one of the better ones, and from Jan 72:

"If you are a sports-car boffin, we'll never sell you a mobile coffin".


They got worse; much worse.


RIP John.

His ad was usually the first thing I turned to. Even after many years I can remember off the top of my head;

"Morgan accessories, spare parts and gifts - and it's all on one floor, so there aren't any lifts!"

or

"For all you lovely lads and lasses, we've got cars with wooden chassis"

Another great character lost. Condelenses.

[gabrielk]

Although I had known for many years that John was not well, never the less his death was for me an enormous shock and loss.

Since I first drove for and with him, for two seasons 1968 and 1969, he became one of my greatest friends along with his wife Diana (a world aerobatic champion).

John was the most perfect gentleman, kind, charming and thoughtful – along with his great intelligence and an incisive mind led to his great negotiation skills and business success.

Nobody could have been a better person to drive for, nor team leader. He let me his car, SS1800, for the first 3 races in 1968 as mine car was not ready. That action on his part laid the foundation for the great admiration and respect that I had for an irreplaceable man

Gabriel Konig

[RTH]

Welcome to TNF Gabriel. Any stories you feel like relating would be gratefully received. In the early 70s I was working for a London BLMC distributor at north Finchley and John Britten Garages were under us as a retail dealer, they only ever took MGBs and Midgets, which is where I first got to know Chris Alford who worked for John at Arkley. It was a very unusual but fascinating and charismatic set up there.

Edited by RTH, 30 November 2009 - 12:08.

[Alan Cox]

May I echo Richard's welcome to TNF, Gabriel. Only sorry that John's passing has been the catalyst.
Here are a couple of photos from the late 1960s of the Britten team Miidgets on the grid at Oulton, and one of you in the Oulton paddock. Happy and relaxed days. I remember. as a schoolboy and a fan of John's Motor Sport ads, I wrote to him to ask whether he had any stickers he could send me, and he send me a large packet of the very nice metal badges which he would stick on all all cars sold by John Britten Garages, some of which I still have. I wrote a few more times and sent him a Christmas card I had drawn featuring SS1800, and I always received a charming reply.





And a photo which he used in one of his adverts

[RTH]

Brilliant stuff Alan as ever .

[garyfrogeye]

I don't know if this is being really cheeky and please tell me if I am out of order, but I would like to run a a piece in the Midget & Sprite Club's magazine "Mascot" to highlight John Britten's passing but more importantly celebrate his achevements, especially with Midgets, Arkleys and SS1800.

I don't have the knowlege (or the time to acquire it in time) to write anything that might do John Britten justice and John Sprinzel has already written too many obituaries for me this year.

Could someone from TNF help with this?

Gary
editor@midgetandspriteclub.co.uk

[garyfrogeye]

I have now sorted it as John Baggott has offered to write something.

Gary

I don't know if this is being really cheeky and please tell me if I am out of order, but I would like to run a a piece in the Midget & Sprite Club's magazine "Mascot" to highlight John Britten's passing but more importantly celebrate his achevements, especially with Midgets, Arkleys and SS1800.

I don't have the knowlege (or the time to acquire it in time) to write anything that might do John Britten justice and John Sprinzel has already written too many obituaries for me this year.

Could someone from TNF help with this?

Gary
editor@midgetandspriteclub.co.uk

[richardspringett]

I recall John Britten`s ads very well but only from Exchange and Mart - perhaps before MotorSport as the former was definitely perceived as more down market!

I only had one occasion to visit Arkley in about 1967 and made an appointment with JB to view a yellow bugeyed A-H Sprite. He got very excited when I turned up pointing out the special prep engine etc and was visibly disappointed when I reluctantly explained it wasn`t quite suitable to share with my mother. He then explained he would do a great deal on it as he wanted my Dad`s Volvo 122S - borrowed to visit him - in exchange as he was shortly going on holiday to France with the family and the Volvo would be a great touring car! Happy days.

My condolences to family and friends.

Richard

edit; added date

Edited by richardspringett, 01 December 2009 - 03:04.

[chris s]

Car 206 in the pic was my Sprite at Mallory in 68. I did loads of races then against the likes of Bill Nicolson, John Chatham, but I was always in AWE of John and also Gabriel. They were the ones to look up to.

RIP

Chris Smith

[Alan Cox]

Car 206 in the pic was my Sprite at Mallory in 68.

The pic was actually taken at Oulton, Chris.

[bradbury west]

chris s.
So in that case did you race against Garo Nigogosian?
Roger Lund

[chris s]

Sorry for the mistaken paddock, but it was over 40 years ago and many races since. Yes I raced against Garo. Great days and memories.

[frangible]

How sad. I saw him race many times and bought two cars from his garage - a Frogeye and a Mk3 Sprite. Second pic shows his famous rev counter detail...

[sterling49]

Great photo frangible, that looks like it was at Brands? Is it my age, or did John also have a primrose yellow Lenham/Fastback car also, I do not trust my memory anymore

[gabrielk]

Great photo frangible, that looks like it was at Brands? Is it my age, or did John also have a primrose yellow Lenham/Fastback car also, I do not trust my memory anymore

John and Garo both had fast back midgets but they were outlawed so they both changed the bodywork to comply - SS1800 John's car then became the first Arkley and the registration number is still in the family - believe Garo's car was written off by the next owner as was mine

[Andrew Kitson]

John and Garo both had fast back midgets but they were outlawed so they both changed the bodywork to comply - SS1800 John's car then became the first Arkley and the registration number is still in the family - believe Garo's car was written off by the next owner as was mine

Great to see you here Gabriel. I saw you race many times. My father was mechanic to another lady racer Jacqui Bond-Smith from '63-'68.
I have a video of racing in '67 which includes a massive shunt you had at Combe, remember that, when you rolled several times at Quarry?

[john wood]

Further to Alan Cox's post about sending drawings to John Britten - I did exactly the same and drew SS1800 at Bottom Bend, Brands in pen and ink for him, receiving a similar encouraging reply and stickers. I was quite proud of it then but I think if I saw it now it would look pretty rough. Strange to think that our drawings were probably alongside each other on his wall and now we communicate about it forty-odd years on. I was a fan of the team, following the race reports in Motoring News and Autosport and the wonderful ads in Motor Sport. Saw John race the fastback Midget at Lydden in 1966 and SS1800 at Croft (1968?) and also Gabriel in the Sebring Sprite at Croft (1967?). I can only echo the condolences of others on the forum-he was one of the good guys.