Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Murray Walker: Unless I’m Very Much Mistaken
    Murray Walker: Unless I’m Very Much Mistaken
    Murray Walker: Unless I’m Very Much Mistaken
    Audiobook (abridged)3 hours

    Murray Walker: Unless I’m Very Much Mistaken

    Written by Murray Walker

    Narrated by Murray Walker

    4/5

    ()

    Switch to ebook

    About this audiobook

    The voice of motor racing and much loved public figure – and the man responsible for introducing millions of viewers to the previously inaccessible world of Formula 1 – tells the story of his incident-packed life, with a brand new chapter on his globetrotting adventures since retirement.

    Murray Walker is a national treasure. When the man who made famous the catch phrase 'Unless I'm very much mistaken… I AM very much mistaken!!!' announced that he was retiring as ITV's Grand Prix commentator, the media reacted as if the sport itself was losing one of its biggest stars.

    His reputation for mistakes was the making of Walker. He was the fan who happened to be given the keys to the commentary box – and never wanted to give them back. His high-octane delivery kept viewers on the edge of their seats, while his passion for talking about the sport he loved was matched by an all-encompassing knowledge gained through hours of painstaking research before every race.

    In his book he writes about his childhood and the influence that his father, British motorcycle champion Graham Walker, had on his career. Failing to match his father's achievements on the track after active service in World War II, he made a successful career for himself in advertising which catapulted him to the top of his profession.

    An offer from the BBC to take over the commentary seat for their F1 broadcasts was too good to turn down, and it wasn't long before the infamous 'Murrayisms' enlivened a sport which until then had been shrouded in a cloak of unfathomable technical jargon and mind-numbing statistics.

    He also talks about the biggest changes in the sport over the last 50 years, in particular the safety issues which came to the fore after the tragic death of Ayrton Senna, which he witnessed first hand. His partnership with James Hunt behind the microphone is the subject of some hilarious anecdotes, while his views on drivers past and present such as Stirling Moss, Jackie Stewart, Damon Hill and Michael Schumacher make for fascinating reading.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateOct 10, 2013
    ISBN9780007276936

    Related to Murray Walker

    Related audiobooks

    Personal Memoirs For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      A Brief Chat With... GRAHAM FORSDYKE

      May 5, 2021

      It is the dream of many young motorcycle enthusiasts to be involved in the motorcycle world, but opportunities are few. Graham Forsdyke was one such lad, a good sporting competitor in his own right with more than enough skill to win an event or three

      4 min read

    • Article

      Murray Walker

      Mar 18, 2021

      PHOTOGRAPHY Broadcasting legend Murray Walker, who has died at the age of 97, made a huge contribution to growth in interest in Formula 1 in Britain. Generations of fans grew up listening to his voice describing the exploits of drivers such as Jackie

      9 min read

    • Article

      Letters

      Feb 1, 2023

      Letters
      4 min read

    • Article

      Readers’ Letters

      Apr 3, 2024

      SIR: In 2016, my book A History of Magazine Design was published by that great oldie of a museum, the V&A. On page 15, there is a cover of the Weekly Illustrated Annual from 1937 (see picture). There were various candidates for ‘The Man Behind the Ca

      4 min read

    • Article

      Blow Your Own Letters To The Editor

      Jan 3, 2024

      I enjoyed your article in Old Bike Magazine on the Norton Nomad (OBA 88). The Nomad is one rare beast and a sought-after Norton collectible. I did want to point out that the Nomad did not use a Model 77 frame. The Nomad frame is “based” on a model 77

      6 min read

    • Article

      Lunch with BILL GAVIN

      Jun 21, 2019

      Lunch with BILL GAVIN
      9 min read

    • Article

      Peter Melton

      Jan 31, 2018

      Peter Melton
      9 min read

    • Article

      Letterbocks

      Apr 14, 2022

      letters@viz.co.uk □ “OUR HOUSE, in the middle of the street,” sang popular North London ska band Madness in the eighties. But I can’t imagine they were particularly popular with local residents if they had a house blocking the middle of the road. If

      9 min read

    • Article

      Greetings, Dear Lovers Of Mostly Old Machinery!

      Mar 29, 2021

      THE CREW OF CLASSIC BIKE GUIDE, wretched, giddy, drunken fools we may be, hope you are all happy, healthy(ish) and dealing with what the world throws at us, while still planning your rides, tinkering in the shed, buying projects and not, in any way,

      2 min read

    • Article

      Readers Write

      Jun 15, 2021

      If you want to get in touch… ... please do. We read every letter, email and comment sent to us and we enjoy hearing from you whether you’ve an event coming up, a motorcycle you own or just want to let us know about something you find interesting in C

      4 min read

    • Article

      Letter Bocks

      May 19, 2022

      Letter Bocks
      13 min read

    • Article

      Thumbs Up...

      May 10, 2022

      Thumbs Up...
      10 min read

    • Article

      Tom Rowland

      Jul 30, 2021

      If you weren’t a rider, you would be.... I enjoy writing so perhaps journalism. I’m a country person at heart, but I love the hustle and bustle of a big city so a job that allowed me to spend time in both environments – and with plenty of variety, tr

      2 min read

    • Article

      Readers Write

      Jun 7, 2017

      Sponsored by DUKE DUKE DUKE DUKE DUKE Fondness and flying lap times Dear CR Excellent and so very appropriate that CR #185 is devoted to the great John Surtees; it so fittingly acknowledges and presents this thoroughly typical English gentleman in th

      6 min read

    • Article

      Be My Celeb Bike Buddy

      Mar 22, 2023

      Be My Celeb Bike Buddy
      3 min read

    • Article

      ITV Racing presenter

      Apr 13, 2023

      ITV Racing presenter
      3 min read

    • Article

      Thumbs Up…

      May 10, 2022

      Thumbs Up…
      10 min read

    • Article

      Thumbs Up…

      May 10, 2022

      Thumbs Up…
      10 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The Editor

      Mar 4, 2020

      Frank Sinclair (OBA 83) and his Vincent became legends in Australian history; probably the longest competing and competitive Vincent in Australia and the world. My uncle Alan Smith (0ne of Frank’s passengers) was a great and quiet guy who loved racin

      6 min read

    • Article

      Fall From Grace

      Oct 27, 2021

      NOT TOO MANY MOTOR SPORT autobiographies begin with the protagonist pointing a gun at his own head with the genuine intention of pulling the trigger. Nothing about A Checkered Past is normal, especially in the context of straight-up and serious racin

      11 min read

    • Article

      Readers’ Letters

      Jul 1, 2020

      I just couldn’t resist dropping you a line in appreciation of The Classic MotorCycle magazine. I am coming up to 84 years old and have been a motor car enthusiast from my youth. I was always interested in motorbikes, but have only ridden one once, th

      7 min read

    • Article

      Blow Your Own

      Aug 4, 2021

      I was wondering if you would be interested to feature my bike and the story behind it. It is a Kawasaki KE 100 that we customised into a classic scrambler look. It is a tribute project for my father who passed away. I am from Cebu, Philippines and I

      5 min read

    • Article

      Readers' Letters

      Sep 2, 2020

      After reading the article about the two Vincent riders in the August issue, I thought I'd drop you a line, as I also went on that rally on my Venom Clubman, which I still ride and have owned since 1961. I travelled Harwich to Zeebrugge to Berlin; Ber

      8 min read

    • Article

      The Real STEVE HISLOP

      Dec 19, 2017

      Words by: Larry Carter Steve ‘Hizzy’ Hislop was an 11-times Isle of ManTT winner, he was British 250cc champion and double British Superbike champion, but there was a lot more to him than his racing achievements. The Scotsman lost his father and

      9 min read

    • Article

      Love, Luck & Impossible Sadness

      Jul 21, 2019

      Love, Luck & Impossible Sadness
      9 min read

    • Article

      For The Love Of Motorsport

      Jan 16, 2020

      I’ve loved motorsport for years. In the 1970s it was a far-off world that I was aware of, but didn’t think was actually real. It got as real as having an ‘Embassy Racing with Graham Hill’ sticker on my little holiday suitcase. Into the 1980s it becam

      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Murray Walker

    4/5

    9 ratings2 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      I've always been a huge Murray Walker fan, but didn't enjoy this book all that much. It was meh. I was expecting more anecdotes, especially from a F1 point of view.

      He seemed more excited about motorcycling raceing than F1 and that perhaps put me off as I was expecting something more F1 related experiences. The book was nothing more than a rather brief summary of F1 and Murray Walker. E.g. I would have loved to have heard his views on rule changes over the years, best races, characters in the paddock.

      Other than a few fleeting references to these topics, there was nothing to pique my interest. I felt that I didn't get to see F1 the way he did. It was a very shallow dissection of his experiences in F1 and I feel disappointed that I know nothing more of F1 than before reading the book. A shame, as I believe he could've told that story very eloquently.

      The autobiography also jumped back and forth in time and it was difficult to always keep track where we were in his life story.

      For now, I'd much rather savour his Murrayisms than get excited about his biography.... That is unless I'm very much mistaken.
    • 3/5
      Throughout my formative years watching Formula 1 two things bring it all flooding back, that music by Fleetwood Mac and the voice of Murray Walker.

      When reading this autobiography you hear in that distinctive tone, and the madcap, infectious enthusiasm that he has for all that he has done.

      It was a much better book than I thought it would be, and he has done a lot of amazing things and met a lot of famous racers and others in the two careers that he had.