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| Nationality | British |
|---|---|
| Born | (1899-01-22)22 January 1899Builth Wells,Wales[1] |
| Died | 5 May 1931(1931-05-05) (aged 32)Drakensberg,South Africa |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans career | |
| Years | 1929–1930 |
| Teams | Bentley Motors Ltd. |
| Best finish | 1st(1930) |
| Class wins | 1(1930) |
George Pearson Glen Kidston (23 January 1899 – 5 May 1931) was a Welsh/Englishmotor racing driver andaviator who completed a record-breaking flight fromNetheravon, Wiltshire toCape Town, South Africa, in 1931. He was one of the "Bentley Boys".
His father, Archibald Glen Kidston, was a grandson of the original A. G. Kidston, founder of the firm A.G. Kidston & Co,[2] who was a metal and machinery merchant inGlasgow with interests in theClyde Shipping Company, local solicitors, accountants and banking interests amalgamated into theClydesdale Bank. Kidston was a member of the well-knownBentley Boys of the late 1920s, and possibly the wealthiest of that already wealthy set.[3] Kidston was one of the four, coreGrosvenor Square-basedBentley team drivers, whose day-long parties passed into contemporary legend.[4]
Alieutenant commander in theRoyal Navy, he wastorpedoed twice (in the consecutive sinkings ofHMS Aboukir andHogue) in the same morning during theaction of 22 September 1914 against German submarineU-9 under the command of CommanderOtto Weddigen.[5] Following repatriation he served in the dreadnoughtHMS Orion, with the BritishGrand Fleet at theBattle of Jutland, running gunnery orders on open deck under direct enemy fire. Kidston served on several leading-edge British submarines, including the notoriousX1, which he served on in North Sea trials. During the trials theX1 became embedded in the seabed as its gauges were faulty. In December 1926 he received command of anH-class submarine, the Beardmore-builtH24. Away from his duties as a submariner, he was an early pioneer of naval flight.
Kidston competed in numerous motor races including theMonte Carlo Rally,Isle of Man TT motorcycle races, andShelsley Walshhillclimb. As a naval amateur he raced aSunbeammotorcycle up the hill climb inHong Kong and conducted speed trials on the sands, bringing the bike with him in his submarine which was patrolling the China Station.[original research?] Kidston entered the 1929 Irish Grand Prix Éireann Cup atPhoenix Park but was narrowly beaten by theAlfa Romeo of former Russian Imperial Guard officerBoris Ivanowski. This was achieved at the expense of Britons Glen Kidston andHenry Birkin, whose Bentleys were second and third respectively. He also owned and raced the firstBugatti in the UK and entered theLe Mans 24-hour race in1929 and1930. On the second occasion he won the race, driving aBentley Speed Six in partnership withWoolf Barnato, with the Bentley team delivering a 1-2-3-4 victory.
In 1929, Kidston was travelling fromCroydon toAmsterdam aboard a German airliner when, 21 minutes into the flight, he sensed animminent crash and assumed the safety position. On impact, Kidston kicked his way out of the fuselage while his clothing was burning and extinguished the flames by rolling in the wet grass.[6] He was thesole survivor, and was hospitalised with extensive burns. The plane's co-pilot,Prince Eugen of Schaumburg-Lippe, was ejected from the plane and initially survived, but died of his injuries the next day.
Kidston was a renowned big game hunter and expert shot, and travelled on pioneering safaris in remote Kenyan districts. Films of these expeditions, of his early naval and other aviation and Bentley teamwork are held at theBritish Film Institute due to their quality and pioneering footage.
In April 1931, Kidston completed a record-breaking flight fromNetheravon, Wiltshire, toCape Town, South Africa.[7] He completed the journey in 6½ days, flying his own specially adaptedLockheed Vega monoplane and averaging 131 miles per hour (211 km/h).[5] However, Kidston was never to make the return trip. After earlier near misses in aeroplane, motorcycle, speed boat and even submarine accidents, Kidston was killed, only a year after his Le Mans triumph, when his borrowedde Havilland Puss Moth broke up in mid-air while flying through a dust storm over theDrakensberg mountains.[5][8]
News of Kidston's death broke in the London evening papers andMargaret Whigham (later Duchess of Argyll) andBarbara Cartland, both amongst Kidston's lovers, claim in their memoirs to have fainted on leaving the theatre and seeing the headlines. The Hollywood femme fatalePola Negri is also reputed to have known Kidston.
He married Nancy Miriel Denise Soames in 1925 and had a son, Archibald Martin Glen (1927–1978).Cath Kidston is his granddaughter. His nephew is classic car dealer, collector, commentator and journalist,Simon Kidston.
Kidston's gravestone at St. Peter's inGlasbury-upon-Wye on the Welsh borders, his childhood home, reads "Time and tide wait for no man", and has a sundial.[original research?] A memorial to him, an aluminium propeller set in stone, stands at the crash site (28°14′55″S29°23′32″E / 28.24850°S 29.39214°E /-28.24850; 29.39214).
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1929 |  Bentley Motors Ltd | Jack Dunfee | Bentley 4½ Litre | 5.0 | 167 | 2nd | 1st |
| 1930 | Bentley Motors Ltd | Woolf Barnato | Bentley Speed Six | >3.0 | 179 | 1st | 1st |
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1930 with: Woolf Barnato | Succeeded by |
