Eric Brandon (18 July 1920 in

East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a Major Centre. The population is 76,186. It was originally part of the hundred o ...

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

– 8 August 1982 in

Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan borough on the south coast of Hampshire, South East England. At the 2011 Census, its population was 82,662. Gosport is situated on a peninsula on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour, opposite ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

) was a

motor racing Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of t ...

driver and businessman. He was closely associated with the

Cooper Car Company The Cooper Car Company is a British car manufacturer founded in December 1947 by Charles Cooper and his son John Cooper. Together with John's boyhood friend, Eric Brandon, they began by building racing cars in Charles's small gara ...

, and was instrumental in the early development of the company. When he and his boyhood friend John Cooper were released from military service after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

they built two cars to the new National regulations. Brandon, whose family business was electrical goods, had access to BTH magnetos for the

JAP ''Jap'' is an English abbreviation of the word "Japanese". Today, it is generally regarded as an ethnic slur. In the United States, some Japanese Americans have come to find the term very offensive, even when used as an abbreviation. Prior to t ...

engines, which Cooper's father Charlie then acquired. Brandon entered his Cooper in numerous

hillclimbs Hillclimbing, also known as hill climbing, speed hillclimbing, or speed hill climbing, is a branch of motorsport in which drivers compete against the clock to complete an uphill course. It is one of the oldest forms of motorsport, since the firs ...

and sprints and in 1947, at Gransden Lodge airfield, he won Britain's first-ever 500 cc circuit race.Eric Brandon
''500race.org'' Retrieved on 8 April 2008 He also won the first

Formula Three Formula Three, also called Formula 3, abbreviated as F3, is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One dri ...

title, in 1951.British F3 Champions
''motorsportsetc.com'' Retrieved on 4 September 2007. Later in the 1950s Brandon entered five World Championship Grands Prix in larger,

Formula Two Formula Two (F2 or Formula 2) is a type of open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009– 2012 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The name ...

Cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * Cooper (video game character), in ...

- Bristols, but failed to score any Championship points. For much of his career Brandon raced for the Ecurie Richmond team, which he formed with Alan Brown. In 1955 he funded the construction of his own ''Halseylec'' sports car, named after his electrical supplies company. He continued to compete in cars until 1956, but had become increasingly involved in

hydroplane racing Hydroplane racing (also known as hydro racing) is a sport involving racing hydroplanes on lakes and rivers. It is a popular spectator sport in several countries. Racing circuits International professional outboard hydroplane racing The Union In ...

and by 1957 had devoted himself entirely to this outlet for his competitive spirit.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

( key)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brandon, Eric 1920 births 1982 deaths English Formula One drivers British motorboat racers English racing drivers British Formula Three Championship drivers People from East Ham Sportspeople from Essex