William Doran (, 12 November 1916 – 9 September 1973) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

professional

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

motorcycle road racer. Born in Tottington near

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, he started racing in 1946, ''Motor Cycle'' w/e 15 September 1973, p.33 Accessed and added 15 December 2014 finishing in twenty-third position in his first Manx Grand Prix and placed second in the 1948 Senior TT race on private Nortons. He became a works AJS rider from 1949, winning the 1949 Belgian Grand Prix on an

AJS Porcupine The AJS 500 cc Porcupine was a British racing motorcycle built by Associated Motor Cycles (AMC), which débuted in 1945 with a horizontal-engine designated E90S. The later E95 model was developed with an inclined-engine. AMC produced AJS an ...

, until his retirement after suffering a head injury in a serious crash in August 1953 at

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

. His best season was in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

when he won the

Dutch TT The Dutch Tourist Trophy, also known as the ''TT Assen'', is an annual Dutch motorsport event established in 1925 for road racing motorcycles held on the TT Circuit Assen, also known as the ‘Cathedral of Speed'. The event attained world champ ...

and finished the year second to

Geoff Duke Geoffrey Ernest Duke (29 March 1923 – 1 May 2015) was a British multiple motorcycle Grand Prix road racing world champion. Born in St. Helens, Lancashire, after retirement from competition he was a businessman based in the Isle of Man. He ...

in the 350cc world championship. Doran won two Grand Prix races during his career. Doran had part of the Isle of Man TT course named after him. He was proud because, at the time of dedication, he was the only living recipient with a named section. He crashed during a Thursday evening practice for the 1952 Isle of Man TT riding an AJS motorcycle resulting in a broken leg. The accident occurred on the left-hand bend after Ballig Bridge and was renamed Doran's Bend. In late 1952 at the London Motorcycle Show, Doran approached the Italian company Gilera for a works ride for the 1953 season. However, in a letter dated November 27, 1952 Gilera replied to the request stating the positions on their team were filled for the coming season so Doran started the 1953 season on his now obsolete AJS scoring three points paying finishes before the career ending crash at Rouen. After retirement from racing in 1954 he opened a motorcycle business in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, Shropshire, with former AJS race-chief Matt Wright, selling new motorcycles collected from the

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

factories in a pick-up vehicle driven by Doran's wife Peggy, daughter of Herbert Ratcliffe, whom he married in 1955.

Isetta The Isetta is an Italian-designed microcar built under license in a number of different countries, including Argentina, Spain, Belgium, France, Brazil, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Because of its egg shape and bubble-like windows, it became k ...

and

Messerschmitt Messerschmitt AG () was a German share-ownership limited, aircraft manufacturing corporation named after its chief designer Willy Messerschmitt from mid-July 1938 onwards, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, in partic ...

three-wheeler A three-wheeler is a vehicle with three wheels. Some are motorized tricycles, which may be legally classed as motorcycles, while others are tricycles without a motor, some of which are human-powered vehicles and animal-powered vehicles. Overv ...

s were also collected from

Luton airport London Luton Airport is an international airport located in Luton, Bedfordshire, England, situated east of the town centre, and north of Central London. The airport is owned by London Luton Airport Ltd (LLAL), a company wholly owned by L ...

. Partner Matt Wright retired in 1967, and with the demise of the British Motorcycle manufacturers, most notably BSA in 1971, Doran developed the business into a Yamaha, Suzuki and Lambretta dealership in addition to a FIAT car dealership, car repairs and petrol sales, with the later acquisition of two further nearby sites.Shropshire motorbike ace's Isle of Man TT tales
Shropshire Star, News 1 September 2012 Retrieved 23 December 2014 Known physically by his jutting chin, Doran died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at his home, Carn Brea, Station Road, Admaston, near WellingtonDeath notice, ''Shropshire Star'', 11 September 1973, page 2. in September 1973 aged 56.Age based on life dates, although it was stated to be 58 by his widow when interviewed by the ''Shropshire Star''. After a funeral service at

Wrockwardine Wrockwardine (pronounced "Rock-war-deen/dyne") is a village and civil parish in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England. It lies north of The Wrekin and the M54/ A5, and west of Wellington. There is a Chur ...

Parish Church on 14 September 1973 he was cremated at

Emstrey Emstrey is a dispersed hamlet on the outskirts of Shrewsbury, in the English county of Shropshire. The hamlet is located south-east of the town, on the B4380 road to Atcham. At the west end of the hamlet, on London Road, is the Emstrey Cremato ...

Crematorium,

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

Motorcycle Grand Prix results

1949 point system: Points system from 1950 to 1968: 5 best results were counted up until 1955. (

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doran, Bill 1916 births 1973 deaths People from Southwark People from Wellington, Shropshire English motorcycle racers 350cc World Championship riders 500cc World Championship riders Isle of Man TT riders