It was madness: Grand Prix drivers racing flat out from opposite ends of one long runway, only to turn away from each other at the last moment at corners improvised with hay bales. But such was the major part of the first Grand Prix course ever to be devised at Silverstone. Fortunately there were no head-on collisions, and the next year the organisers hit on a more sensible arrangement. But none of the many subsequent Grand Prix at Silverstone, for all the ever-increasing glamour and hype, have quite engendered the same excitement as that very first one in 1948, even though it was held on a long-disused airfield bereft of modern amenities. Silverstone’s First Grand Prix is a vivid recreation of that important day for British motor sport. But it is more than just the description of one historic race. We follow the various leading participants, both drivers and organisers, as fate draws them inexorably to Silverstone from different parts of the world and from very varied experiences, not least in the recent war. And after that one glorious day in early October is over and the RAC’s International Grand Prix of 1948 has become part of motor racing history, we learn what fate had further in store for them.

For fans all over the world the thrilling partnership of Silverstone and Formula 1 has long represented one of the pinnacles of motor sport. Here the broad sweep of Silverstone's Formula 1 history, a kaleidoscopic pageant of great cars and drivers, is explored in a new and highly accessible way through nine specific eras, each one delightfully and freshly illustrated: * The First Grand Prix and International Trophy (1948-49) * Forza, Alfa! Forza, Ferrari! (1950-51) * The Front-Engined Finale (1952-59) * Clark's Dark Golden Age (1960-68) * The Stewart Dominance (1969-73) * The Hunt-Lauda Epoch (1973-79) * Three Titans: Prost, Mansell and Senna (1981-93) * The Schumacher Era (1994-2006) * New Heights: Hamilton and The Wing (2007 onwards) This photographic history of Silverstone and Formula 1 should appeal to motor racing fans everywhere, as it neatly captures the essence of what the highest level of a most demanding sport has meant to this very special venue.