c.1924 Star Two-Litre 'Brooklands' Single-Seater Racing Car
Fascinating racing provenance involving Malcolm Campbell, Brooklands, and major Irish speed events

Registration No: N/A
Chassis No: T.B.A
MOT: Exempt

• Bodywork first fitted to Malcolm Campbell's Brooklands Star, which raced through the summer of 1924
• Later fitted to the Star 12/40 of Northern Irish racer W. H. Connolly and used in anger during 1928
• Fascinating project for the keen restorer and with significant motor racing provenance
• Offered for sale by H&H in 2009, it has remained dormant ever since!

Star of Wolverhampton produced its first automobile in 1899 and prospered during the veteran and Edwardian periods to enter the 1920s with a range of chassis which embodied the characteristics of mid-market vintage cars: robustness, competitive performance and reasonable economy. The marque had a long association with racing, having participated in the 1903 and 1905 Gordon Bennett Eliminating Trials and the 1914 Tourist Trophy, and it was inevitable that some Stars would find themselves being raced at Brooklands in the 1920s.

Malcolm Campbell had been racing at Brooklands since 1910, and in 1924 he took control of a Star agency in London, which he managed until the marque’s demise in 1932. Also in 1924, Star increased the stroke of its 11.9hp model by 10mm and added a third main bearing to create the 12/25hp model of 1,945cc. Campbell raced an 11.9hp at B.A.R.C. Easter Meeting on April 21st, 1924, winning the 75mph Short Handicap, afterwards equipping it with one of the new 12/25hp engines. A peculiarity of its chassis was that the track rod was placed ahead of the axle, a feature not seen on the production cars. It was due to run at the B.A.R.C. meeting on June 9th, but owing to a fatality the meeting was cancelled before the Star’s race. It went on to appear at the July 23rd Essex M.C. meeting, and the B.A.R.C. meetings of August 4th and September 13th. Averaging 79.95mph, Campbell won the 75mph Short Handicap at the September meeting. A number of photographs show the Star with its slim, polished aluminium single-seater coachwork and Rudge wire wheels.

Campbell moved on to newer models for 1925, but somehow, through the Star network, his single-seater body arrived in Belfast. Coulter & Co. of 51, Chichester Street, was an agent both for Star and Ford. J. E. “Jack” Coulter was keenly involved in Northern Irish motor sport and regularly fielded entries in the Ballybannon Hill-Climb and the Magilligan Speed Trials, although his own ability to drive was hampered after he suffered an accident in his two-seater 1926 Star 12/40 (an OHV development of the 12/25 introduced late in 1924), which resulted in the amputation of one arm. Thereafter, his apprentice Bob Wylie became his personal driver. Another employee, W. H. “Billy” Connolly, became Coulter’s chief racer, campaigning the repaired 12/40 sans wings. Following a demand from Ford that Coulter ceased to work with other marques, Connolly opened his own Star garage, acquiring in the process the 12/40, which resurfaced in 1928 with Campbell’s old racing body. Now with a lighter, more streamlined car, Connolly achieved more strong results, including an FTD at Ballybannon. Though he continued to compete with a two-litre Star until 1930, in his final outing at Ballybannon his car was described as "completely standard." A detailed account of the Coulter-Connolly Star’s event entries and results may be found in Paul Robinson’s 2023 book From Ballybannon Hill to Magilligan Strand, which contains many photographs of the 12/40, including the front-cover shot of it sporting the Campbell body.

The 12/40 was later reunited with its two-seater body and restored with wings, while the racing body ended up being stored in the rafters of Connolly’s garage in Donegall Pass, where it remained hidden until the first decade of this century. It was rescued by Bob Wylie’s son, Mike, and the search began for an appropriate chassis. Relying on the help and generosity of other enthusiasts, he acquired a six-cylinder chassis that was altered to four-cylinder configuration, a 12/25hp engine and gearbox, both axles and smaller spares such as a steering box, remanufactured steering wheel, overhauled magneto, an original seat, some floorboards and miscellaneous engine, transmission, braking and steering components. The engine and axles have been dated to 1924. Sadly, the project has not progressed since we offered it for sale in 2009 and certain parts, such as the steering column, mountings and drop arm must still be sourced. Nevertheless, it represents a fantastic opportunity for a capable restorer to resurrect a unique and richly provenanced piece of motor sport and Sir Malcolm Campbell history.

For more information, please contact:
Paul Cheetham
paul.cheetham@handh.co.uk
07538 667452