John Foulston

27/6/1947 - 29/9/1987

Record updated 26-Jun-06

A keen amateur driver in sports cars and historics, John Foulston at one time owned Brands Hatch and a number of other UK circuits. Killed at Silverstone while testing a McLaren M15S Indycar.

John Foulston made his money in computers. He sold his company Atlantic Computers and in 1986 he bought Brands Hatch, Oulton Park and Snetterton circuits and established a new company called Brands Hatch Leisure Group. The following year he added Cadwell Park.

He was a keen amateur driver in the Thundersport with a  Lola T530 Can-Am and historic racing with a variety of machines, his wife Mary briefly raced as well.

On 29 September 1987, he crashed while testing his 1970 Indycar McLaren M15S-Offenhauser for the historic race scheduled for 4th October.

The car's throttle was jammed open when a piece of internal manifold that had been left in place from a previous modification, broke off under vibration. The car buried itself in the outside bank at Club corner. In those days there were only a few rows of catch fencing before you hit the railway sleepers. Foulston died at the scene.