The man who brought Formula 1 into our homes
Murray Walker’s unique tones worked in perfect harmony with a revving race engine. Simon Arron bids farewell
Shutterstock
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
159
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
It is almost 20 years since his formal retirement as a full-time commentator, but he never really abandoned the job completely. Still working at an age that the majority simply don’t reach, Murray Walker was an institution, the like of which we might never see again. His death at 97 has left a huge hole in the fabric of motor sport – not just in the UK, but around the world.
With Murray, the passion you heard was 100% genuine – a by-product of his upbringing in a racing family.
Born in Hall Green, Birmingham, on October 10, 1923 – less than a year before Motor Sport made its bow – Murray was the son of motorcycle racer Graham Walker, winner of the 1931 Isle of Man Lightweight TT. He would go on to ride bikes at grassroots level – quite literally so, in some instances, as he competed at Brands Hatch when it was still just a field – though he enjoyed his greatest competitive successes in trials events.
