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The Man Who Supercharged Bond - The Extraordinary Story of Charles Amherst Villiers

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SKU:
9781844254682
UPC:
9781844254682
MPN:
9781844254682
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0.75 KGS
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  • The Man Who Supercharged Bond: The Story of Charles Amherst Villiers
  • The Man Who Supercharged Bond: The Story of Charles Amherst Villiers
  • The Man Who Supercharged Bond: The Story of Charles Amherst Villiers
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Description

By: Paul Kenny .

Charles Amherst Villiers was born into the British aristocracy, a scion of the houses of Clarendon, Marlborough and Wimborne. By applying lessons learned in the famous workshops of Oundle School, he came to play a key role in pre-war British motor sport, supercharging the Blower Bentley that did battle with Mercedes at Le Mans, and designing Malcolm Campbell's first land speed record-breaking Bluebird.

A switch into aeronautic engineering culminated in an audacious design for a six-engine, double-decker, transatlantic aircraft, before Villiers moved to the US to devote himself to rocketry, designing the gyroscope that helped win his company contracts for Poseidon and Polaris, and advising on the optimal route for Man to journey to Mars.

This remarkable Renaissance Man was also a gifted artist, studying under portrait painter Pietro Annigoni in Florence, and painting subjects as varied as Pope John Paul II, racing driver Graham Hill and James Bond writer Ian Fleming. Indeed, Fleming was so engaged with his friend that 007's 'only hobby' was a Blower Bentley, and Villiers was asked to provide the initial design drawings for ChittyChitty-Bang-Bang.

At an age when most men retire, Villiers returned to front-line motor racing, advising on the engine that propelled Graham Hill to his first World Championship. His revolutionary Grand Prix engine design a decade later was only aborted by Hill's fatal air accident.

Paul Kenny has taken each strand of Villiers' extraordinary life, and the character traits that prevented him from attaining true greatness, and woven them into an enthralling tale.

 

Other Details

Publisher Code:
H4468
ISBN 10:
 
ISBN 13:
9781844254682
Published:
2009
Dimensions:
160x240mm
Pages:
352
Illustrations:
Hard Bound, Colour and b/w ill
Barcode:
9781844254682
 
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Additional Information

Condition Sync Code:
1000
Sync Category Code:
261186
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