Gerry Birrell was a Scottish

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 racing driver who was killed in an accident during practice for a Formula Two

Formula Two

Formula Two, abbreviated to F2, is a type of open wheel formula racing. It was replaced by Formula 3000 in 1985, but the FIA announced in 2008 that Formula Two would return for 2009 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship...

 race at Rouen-Les-Essarts

Rouen-Les-Essarts

Rouen-Les-Essarts was a race track in Grand-Couronne, near Rouen, France.From its opening in 1950, Rouen-Les-Essarts was recognized as one of Europe's finest circuits, with modern pits, a wide track, and spectator grandstands...

.

Born in Milngavie

Milngavie

Milngavie , is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It is on the Allander Water, at the northwestern edge of Greater Glasgow, and about from Glasgow city centre. It neighbours Bearsden....

 near Glasgow, Birrell left school when aged 15 to start an apprenticeship with a BMC

British Motor Corporation

The British Motor Corporation, or commonly known as BMC was a vehicle manufacturer from United Kingdom, formed by the merger of the Austin Motor Company and the Nuffield Organisation in 1952...

 dealer. He acquired extensive technical experience working as a race mechanic for his elder brother, Graham Birrell. He started serious racing single seaters

Open wheel car

Open-wheel car, formula car, or often single-seater car in British English, describes cars with the wheels outside the car's main body and, in most cases, one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have their wheels below the body or fenders...

 at the relatively late age of 24. He began in Formula Vee

Formula Vee

Formula Vee is a popular open wheel, single seater junior motor racing formula, with relatively low costs in comparison to Formula Ford or Formula BMW....

 late in 1967, competing at Ingliston where he led for much of the race before finishing second to Nick Brittan, the leading Formula Vee driver of the time. He moved south and transferred to Formula Ford

Formula Ford

Formula Ford is a single seater, open wheel class in motorsport which exists in some form in many countries around the world. It is an entry-level series to motor racing....

 in 1969, racing against drivers such as Emerson Fittipaldi

Emerson Fittipaldi

Emerson Fittipaldi |São Paulo]], Brazil) is a Brazilian automobile racing driver who throughout a long and successful career won the Indianapolis 500 twice and championships in both Formula One and CART.-Early and personal life:...

 and James Hunt

James Hunt

James Simon Wallis Hunt was a British racing driver from England who won the Formula One World Championship in . Hunt's often action packed exploits on track earned him the nickname "Hunt the Shunt." After retiring from driving, Hunt became a media commentator and businessman...

. He progressed to Formula 3 and Formula 2 in 1970, racing private Brabhams and a Lotus

Team Lotus

Team Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport series including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar and sports car racing...

 69. Birrell was also successful in touring cars, mainly in a Ford Capri

Ford Capri

Ford Capri was a name used by the Ford Motor Company for three different automobile models. The Ford Consul Capri coupé was produced by Ford of Britain between 1961 and 1964. The Ford Capri coupé was produced by Ford of Europe from 1969 to 1986...

 - taking a Class win in the 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans

1972 24 Hours of Le Mans

The 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 40th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 10 and 11 1972. It was the ninth round of the World Sportscar Championship.-Pre-race:...

.

By 1973 he was being slated to replace his fellow Scot Jackie Stewart

Jackie Stewart

Sir John Young Stewart, OBE , better known as Jackie Stewart, and nicknamed The Flying Scotsman, is a Scottish former racing driver and team owner. He competed in Formula One between 1965 and 1973, winning three World Drivers' Championships. He also competed in Can-Am...

 at Tyrrell Racing

Tyrrell Racing

The Tyrrell Racing Organisation was an auto racing team and Formula One constructor founded by Ken Tyrrell which started racing in 1958 and started building its own cars in 1970. The team experienced its greatest success in the early 1970s, when it won three drivers' championships and one...

 in Formula One

Formula One

Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...

. A promising career was ended during qualifying for the F2 Trophee D'Europe race at Rouen when a front tyre failed at the notorious Six Freres corner, Birrell's Chevron

Chevron Cars Ltd

Chevron Cars Ltd. is a manufacturer of racing cars, founded by Derek Bennett in 1965. Following Bennett's death in 1978, the firm has remained active in various guises. The original company's designs and name continue to be utilized by Roger Andreason to build replacement parts and continuation...

 B25 being thrown into a poorly secured crash barrier. The rail was lifted by the force of the crash, and the Chevron passed beneath it, decapitating the unfortunate Birrell.

Sources

• Motor Sport (April 2004 issue) - Lost Before His Time by Adam Cooper