Patricia 'Patsy' Mary Burt
Life in Elmbridge
Patsy Burt competed successfully in international hill climb and sprint events during the 1950s and 60s and was possibly the most successful and recognised British post war female competition driver in a peer group of Jean Bloxam and Pat Moss (sister of Stirling).
In the 1960s she established her own race preparation and service business in Bookham called PMB Garage the site of which was purchased by T.W. Whites in 1985. The site was sold in 2022 and is now cleared for housing. She became one of the very few female members accepted into the British Racing Drivers’ Club and was a member of the race control team for British GPs in the late 1960s. In 1970 she set a new national 500 metres flying start class B record at 154.91 mph in a McLaren-Oldsmobile thereafter retiring from racing and continuing to work as a race consultant,
Resident in the Fairway in Weybridge from 1964 until 1987 with her husband and Team Manager Ron Smith, the house was commissioned by the Burt brothers and built by WG Tarrant as their racing retreat looking out towards Brooklands. The house was sited in the middle of a tract of land bought in 1935 from Wentworth Estates and was originally addressed as Brooklands Road. 1934 Ordnance Survey maps, aerial photos and election roles show the property to be one of the first in the area and from electoral roles the earliest in occupation. In 1937 the address changed to the Fairway, St Georges Hill and it is believed that the house and land around it formed a large part of the East/Golf course side of the Fairway as it is now known.
Patsy’s grandfather was George Mowlem Burt who was third generation of the renowned Victorian construction firm, Mowlem, Burt and Freeman, responsible for construction of Admiralty Arch, the original New Scotland Yard, refronting of Buckingham Palace and construction of the Coronation Annex at Westminster Abbey for which he was knighted. Patsy’s father Eric also worked at the firm as a Director.
Although Patsy never raced at Brooklands, she was often taken to watch her father and uncle Stewart race at Brooklands in the 1930s hence the siting of the house facing the Brooklands track. Her father was also on the prewar Junior Car Club (which later became The British Automobile Racing Club) committee and a close friend of Archie Fraser-Nash for whom her mother worked during the 1940s.
Her passing in 2001 was marked with condolences from such prominent individuals as Sir Stirling Moss and Sir Jackie Stewart.
Career statistics:
- 42 Outright wins
- 24 Times runner up
- 151 Ladies awards
- 13 Course Records
- 46 Ladies Records
- 12 Continental Ladies Records
- 172 Class Awards
- 118 Other Awards
- 8 International and 21 National Records (SS and FS up to 1 mile)
- 4th 1959 RAC Hill Climb Championship (1.5 Cooper Climax)
- 1970 National Sprint Champion, First woman to win a National Title (4.4 McLaren Oldsmobile)
- Outright course record holder - Brighton, 1968-'75
- Ladies record holder - Shelsley Walsh - 1967-'78
- First British driver to compete in a full season of the European Mountain Championship
Cars driven:
- Jowett Javelin or Jupiter (conflicting reports)
- Alfa Romeo
- Aston Martin DB2/4 (2.6 & 3.0) DB3S
- MG
- Tojeiro
- Jaguar
- Mercedes 300SL & 220D
- Cooper Aston
- Cooper Climax 1.1, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 (T39-T59)
- Connaught B4
- Fiat 1500
- Porsche RSK1500
- McLaren M3A, M10 and M12 (on loan to the Donnington Collection)
Sources
Patsy Burt obituary in Motor Sport Magazine published 7 December 2001
Patsy Burt obituary in The Telegraph published 22 October 2001
M3A history on H&H auction website published 26 November 2008
Career statistics from HistoricRacing.com published 19 October 2006
Electoral roles and Ordnance Survey maps accessed via Surrey History Centre