Ben Lowry: What a character was Paddy Hopkirk, and what memories he had

Almost 20 years ago I interviewed the rally driver Paddy Hopkirk, who has died aged 89.
By Ben Lowry
Published 23rd Jul 2022, 18:08 GMT
Updated 23rd Jul 2022, 18:12 GMT
Paddy Hopkirk at the start of the London to Mexico World Cup rally at Wembley in 1970. He would later say he could change a tyre, not just a wheel: "During long distance rallies, you might have two or three punctures on a stage, so if we ran out of spares we would fit a new tyre in the back seat as we drove"Paddy Hopkirk at the start of the London to Mexico World Cup rally at Wembley in 1970. He would later say he could change a tyre, not just a wheel: "During long distance rallies, you might have two or three punctures on a stage, so if we ran out of spares we would fit a new tyre in the back seat as we drove"
Paddy Hopkirk at the start of the London to Mexico World Cup rally at Wembley in 1970. He would later say he could change a tyre, not just a wheel: "During long distance rallies, you might have two or three punctures on a stage, so if we ran out of spares we would fit a new tyre in the back seat as we drove"

The 1964 Monte Carlo Rally winner appeared in a car column that I compiled for the Belfast Telegraph, and in which the interview subject responded to set questions.

Asked his first car, Paddy replied: “A Harding, a two seater Bath Chair, which was given to me during World War Two when I was 9, and we lived in Whitehouse on Belfast Lough. I was given it by the local clergyman who left it to me in his will. I used to bring grapes from my father’s greenhouses to this old man when he was dying.”

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Asked when he learned to drive, he said: “There was an estate next door to our house, called Macedon, and it had private roads which I used to drive round in the Harding. So I learnt to drive when I was nine.”

Asked if he can change a car tyre, Paddy replied:

“Oh absolutely, I can change a wheel. And I can change a tyre — during the long distance rallies London to Sydney and London to Mexico, you might have two or three punctures on a stage, so if we were running out of spares we would be fitting a new tyre in the back seat as we were driving.”

And his favourite car memory was from training for Monte Carlo in the Alps for a special stage. “Coming down the mountain we some red lights ahead on a little narrow road in a blizzard. We thought: Oh that’s great, it must be the Germans or the Swedes, we’ll catch them and go out for a drink. But it was two nuns in a 2CV Citroen — they obviously knew the road like the back of their hand.”

What a character he was, and what memories he had.

• Ben Lowry (@BenLowry2) is News Letter editor

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