cut off the power supply to Oporto for several hours. Retirement Hamilton sustained unpleasant injuries during the 1958 24 Hours of Le Mans, while contesting the lead in his Jaguar D-Type, and then he was shattered by the death of his friend Mike Hawthorn in early 1959. That tragedy finally prompted him to hang up his racing helmet and gloves in 1959, and concentrated on his garage business in Bagshot. His love and passion for the finest classic motor cars led Hamilton to establish his own company back in 1948. Since then, Duncan Hamilton & Co Limited has become internationally recognised for being one of the most respected and well-connected specialists in historic cars. He co-wrote an autobiography called Touch Wood!. Duncan Hamilton died in Sherborne, Dorset. His son Adrian Hamilton, a classic car dealer, ran his father's garage in another location until his own death in 2021. Duncan's grandson Archie Hamilton is also a racing driver. As Earl Howe wrote in the original autobiography foreword in 1960, though the drivers of his age were fiercely competitive, there were also "friends to meet, stories to tell and almost certainly a party to be enjoyed.". Duncan was certainly larger than life, he wasn't just one of the most successful drivers of the 1950s, but also the man who trespassed at Brooklands, who spent the war in the Fleet Air Arm accidentally trying to drown American Admirals and who was once stopped for speeding whilst rushing to take part in a TV programme on road safety. Hamilton is regarded as the epitome of the old school English competitor. He, and many of his contemporaries such as Hawthorn, Rolt and Peter Collins, raced mainly for the love of the sport, branding them as gentlemen drivers. Racing record Career highlights Complete World Championship results (key) Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results Complete 12 Hours of Sebring results Complete 12 Hours of Reims results Complete 12 Hours of Pescara results Complete 12 Hours of Hyères results References Further reading Duncan Hamilton. Touch Wood - The Autobiography of the 1953 Le Man Winner John Blake Publishing. 2014 978-1782197737. Paul Skilleter. Jaguar Sports Cars. G T Foulis & Co Ltd. 1976 . English racing drivers English Formula One drivers Talbot Formula One drivers Hersham and Walton Motors Formula One drivers 1920 births 1994 deaths Sportspeople from Cork (city) People educated at Brighton College Fleet Air Arm