William John Berry (16 October 1944 – 3 August 2012), better known as John Berry, was a

speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

promoter, team manager, and writer who revived the

Ipswich Witches The Ipswich Witches are a British speedway club based at Foxhall Stadium near Ipswich, Suffolk. They compete in the British SGB Premiership. Meetings are staged on most Thursdays from March until October, normally commencing at 7.30pm (first ra ...

in 1969 and managed the England team.

Biography

Berry was born in

Westminster Hospital Westminster Hospital was a hospital in London, England, founded in 1719. In 1834 a medical school attached to the hospital was formally founded. In 1939 a newly built hospital and medical school opened in Horseferry Road, Westminster. In 1994 the ...

in 1944 and grew up in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

.Berry, John (2004) ''Confessions of a Speedway Promoter'', Retro Speedway, , p. 13, 17, 229 He was educated at the Edmonton County Grammar School before studying for a degree in Food Technology. His first business venture was a

fish and chip shop A fish and chip shop, sometimes referred to as a chip shop, is a (often fast food) restaurant that specialises in selling fish and chips. Usually, fish and chip shops provide takeaway service, although some have seating facilities. Fish and c ...

in London's East End. Along with his school friend turned business partner Joe Thurley, Berry brought speedway back to Ipswich in 1969 by building a new track at

Foxhall Stadium Foxhall Stadium is a Stock car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using car ...

inside the old one which had been covered in tarmac for

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...

.Watson, Stuart (2012)
Tributes flooding in for Ipswich Witches’ legendary speedway promoter John Berry
, ''

East Anglian Daily Times The ''East Anglian Daily Times'' is a British local newspaper for Suffolk and Essex, based in Ipswich. History The newspaper began publication on 13 October 1874, incorporating the ''Ipswich Express'', which had been published since 13 August ...

'', 3 August 2012, retrieved 4 August 2012 Their application for a licence to compete in the second division of the

British League The British League was the main motorcycle speedway league in Britain from its formation in 1965 until 1995 when British speedway was restructured. It initially had a single division, with a second division starting in 1968 (which was renamed the ...

was initially turned down by fellow promoters as they were considered to lack sufficient experience, but later accepted, and Ipswich joined the top division in 1972, taking the place of

West Ham Hammers The West Ham Hammers were a speedway team, first promoted by Jimmy Baxter in 1929. History They operated from the West Ham Stadium until the outbreak of World War II under several different promotions, most successfully under the control o ...

. Recruiting a team of riders largely from the Ipswich area, the Witches were one of the most successful teams of the 1970s and early 1980s, winning the British League in 1975, 1976, and 1984, and finishing as runners-up in 1981 and 1983. Berry went on to manage the England team, taking over from

Reg Fearman Reg Fearman (born 26 April 1933 in London, England) is a former international speedway rider and promoter. Riding career He first received his speedway licence on his sixteenth birthday, presented to him in front of a forty thousand strong West ...

in 1975 and continuing until 1977, and returning to the role in 1978 and 1979.Oakes, Peter (1991) ''The Complete History of the British League'', Front Page Books, , p. 47 (Internationals section), 31 (Division Two section) He managed the England team again in 1982 and 1985, and managed a

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

representative team in a series against Poland in 1987.Rising, Philip (1985) "Why Berry Cashed in His Chips", ''

Speedway Star Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

'', 27 April 1985, p. 18-19 In the mid-1980s he was considered for a position in overall charge of British speedway, but did not get the full support of fellow promoters.Briggs, Barry (2012) ''Wembley and Beyond: My Incredible Journey'', Sphere, He was instrumental in introducing

Billy Sanders William Robert Sanders (9 September 1955 – 23 April 1985Oakes, P (1982). ''Daily Mirror 1982 Speedway Yearbook''. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. ) was an Australian international Speedway rider who won six Australian Championships and wa ...

to British speedway in 1972, and after Sanders' death in 1985, Berry retired from his position as Ipswich promoter. He returned to speedway first as a consultant and then promoter for the

Wimbledon Dons The Wimbledon Dons were a professional motorcycle speedway team who operated from the Wimbledon Stadium, Plough Lane in London.Jacobs, N. ''Speedway in London'', The track opened in 1928 and the Dons operated there from 1929 until 1991. They w ...

in the 1987 season. He emigrated to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 1989. He wrote two books about his time in British speedway, ''Confessions of a Speedway Promoter'' and ''More Confessions''. He was also a columnist for the speedway magazine ''Backtrack''. Berry died on 3 August 2012 at his home in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Australia, aged 67.JOHN BERRY 1944-2012
, speedwaygb.co, 3 August 2012, retrieved 4 August 2012

Publications

*''Confessions of a Speedway Promoter'' (2004) *''More Confessions'' (2004) *''Sliding into Hell'' (2005) (fiction)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berry, John 1944 births 2012 deaths English emigrants to Australia Speedway promoters