Remembering Tony Rolt, born #OnThisDay in 1918, at the time of his death (2008) the longest-surviving participant of the first #F1 GP (Silverstone ’50) - #AnorakFact. He won Le Mans for Jaguar in ’53 (pic) & the Military Cross for “exemplary gallantry in active operations” in WW2.

Canadian privateer Al Pease was born #OnThisDay in 1921. Pic: his yellow Eagle T1G, at Mosport in ’69, looks cool, no? Er, yes, but actually Pease established an unenviable record that day: he remains the only driver in #F1 history to be black-flagged for driving too slowly. #AnorakFact

#AnorakFact: 6 drivers born in the 19th century competed in the #F1 world championship: Philippe Étancelin (born in 1896), Arthur Legat (1898), Clemente Biondetti (1898), Luigi Fagioli (1898), Louis Chiron (1899) & Adolf Brudes (born #OnThisDay in 1899; pic).

The ’56 non-championship BRSCC #F1 Race, held #OnThisDay 70 years ago, was won by Archie Scott Brown (Connaught-Alta). Stuart Lewis-Evans (Connaught-Alta) was 2nd. #AnorakFact: it was the first F1 race held at Brands Hatch. Pic: Bill Morice (Cooper-Bristol) leads Bruce Halford (Maserati) early on.

Remembering Patrick Marie Ghislain Pierre Simon Stanislas Nève de Mévergnies, aka Patrick Nève, born #OnThisDay in ’49. Not an #F1 great, he has the distinction of being Williams Grand Prix Engineering’s first driver - #AnorakFact. Pic: with Frank Williams at Monza in ’77.

Remembering Eugène Martin, who died #OnThisDay 20 years ago, aged 91. He drove 2 #F1 GPs, Silverstone (pic) & Bremgarten ’50, in a Talbot-Lago, DNF-ing in both. In ’49 he’d won the #AixLesBainsCircuitDuLacGP in a Jicey-BMW. #AnorakFact: later he penned the Martin-Spéciale road car, which failed.

#AnorakFact: Paul Hawkins (pic), born #OnThisDay in ’37, & Alberto Ascari share a unique claim to fame, namely that they both ended up in the harbour during a #MonacoGP. Ascari was killed in a Monza test 4 days after his harbour immersion, & Hawkins was killed at Oulton Park 4 years after his.

Eugenio Castellotti, born #OnThisDay in ’30, drove 14 GPs & was killed at 26 testing a Ferrari at Modena. Pic & #AnorakFact: becoming the youngest #F1 pole winner in a Lancia D50 at Spa in ’55, a record that stood until Jacky Ickx took the pole for Ferrari at Nürburgring in ’68.

#OnThisDay in ’61 Innes Ireland scored his one & only #F1 GP win, at Watkins Glen. It was also Team Lotus’s first F1 GP win - but they’d score 73 more. #AnorakFact: the winning car, which had also been raced by both Jim Clark & Stirling Moss, was sold in 2003 for £155,500.

Remembering Yves Giraud-Cabantous, born #OnThisDay in 1904, who started 13 GPs from ’50 to ’53, finishing 4th in the first ever championship #F1 GP, Silverstone ’50, in this Talbot-Lago T26C-DA. #AnorakFact: he retired in ’57 to concentrate on the haulage business he’d founded.

Remembering Bernard Collomb, born #OnThisDay in ’30, who started 4 #F1 GPs & DNQ’d for 2 more, including Monaco ’63, where he campaigned this self-prepared Lotus 24. #AnorakFact: 16th in quali, ahead of Jack Brabham (17th), he DNQ’d because Brabham was an automatic qualifier.

Peter Walker, ’51 Le Mans winner, was born #OnThisDay in 1912. Jaguar boss Lofty England said he was “sometimes quicker than Stirling Moss”. Moss said he was “one of life’s great guys”. #AnorakFact: after he stopped racing, he farmed chinchillas. Pic: BRM, non-championship #PenyaRhinGP, ’50.

#OnThisDay in ’65, on a cold, wet & windy day, Graham Hill (BRM) won the #USGP at Watkins Glen, from pole position, driving fastest lap. #AnorakFact: it was his 3rd consecutive #USGP victory.

Wasn't that the 1 and only win for the BRM H16? #anorakfact.

#HappyBirthday Michael Bleekemolen, 77. He entered 5 #F1 GPs (’77-78) for RAM & ATS, DNQ’d for 4, but won in #F3 & raced in #PorscheSupercup until the age of 60, & he still races today. Pic & #AnorakFact: at Zandvoort in ’78 he became the last F1 driver to wear a Griffin helmet.

Jan Flinterman, an ex-WW2 pilot trying his luck in cars, drove one GP, at Zandvoort in ’52, in a privateer Maserati A6GCM (pic), finishing 9th in another A6GCM he took over from Chico Landi once his own A6GCM’s rear axle had failed - #AnorakFact. He was born #OnThisDay in 1919.

Impressive yet narrow #AzerbaijanGP win just now for George Russell (pic), thereby joining Denny Hulme, Jacky Ickx, Daniel Ricciardo & his Merc team-mate Kimi Antonelli on 8 career #F1 GP wins. #AnorakFact

André Testut died #OnThisDay 21 years ago, aged 79, having DNQ’d for the #MonacoGP in ’58 & ’59 in this Maserati 250F (pic), which - #AnorakFact - had been campaigned in ’56 by Jean Behra, who’d raced it to 2nd in Buenos Aires & 3rd at Monaco, Reims, Silverstone & Nürburgring.

A Scottish Grand Prix would be a nice idea, wouldn’t it? Well, it’s been done before. #AnorakFact: a non-championship #F1 #ScottishGP was run on an airfield circuit at Winfield, Berwickshire, in ’51, & it was won by Philip Fotheringham-Parker, who was born #OnThisDay in 1907.

#AnorakFact: #OnThisDay 40 years ago, at Estoril, Keke Rosberg’s McLaren ran in one-off Marlboro Lights livery (pic), while team-mate Alain Prost’s McLaren retained the usual red/white colouring. Prost finished 2nd to Nigel Mansell (Williams). Rosberg DNF’d on lap 42 with electrical problems.