"Mrs AC Lace"

 

“Mrs AC Lace” is the name used by Phoebe Elizabeth McQueen, born Mylchreest in 1910, when she raced between the two wars. AC (Alfred Clucas) Lace was a driver himself and was in a relationship with her, but the two never married. She often used the forename Betty.

Her first event under this name seems to have been a hillclimb at Shelsley Walsh in September 1934, driving a Hispano-Suiza. In March 1935, she appears at Brooklands for the first time, racing a Singer in the New Haw Long Handicap. It appears to be the same car that she used at Donington in May for a women’s handicap. She was not placed in either race. 

The Singer was still her car of choice for the 1936 First Mountain Handicap, held at the March Handicap meeting at Brooklands. Again, she was not placed, nor in the Second Mountain Handicap at the same event. 

A run in a Fiat followed, as part of a three-car, three-woman Fiat team for the 1936 Light Car Club Relay race at Brooklands. She and her team-mates Elsie Wisdom and Dinah Chaff, the team leader, were fourth, from eight finishers.

A gap then follows before she reappears driving a works-supported Alta in 1938. She won the Ladies’ Cup race held at Crystal Palace as part of the London Grand Prix. 

She did enter two Brooklands races in Talbot-Lago: the JCC International Trophy and the BRDC Road Race. It was possibly the Road Race she was practising for in September when she was hit on the head by a passing seagull “at over 100mph”. She “swerved violently” but was unhurt and able to continue. 

Both times, she was co-driver to AC Lace, but did not get to drive. AC himself seems to have pulled out of the latter event and their relationship may well have broken down by then. Both were declared bankrupt at different times in 1939.

Her first forays into rallying appear in 1936, when she drove a Marendaz in the RAC Rally. The only other Marendaz entries were driven by DMK Marendaz, the car’s creator, and Aileen Moss, mother of Stirling and Pat Moss. 

By the time the RAC Rally came round again in 1937, she was driving a Railton, but she was disqualified from that year’s event. This was her only time out in that car. Driving a French Delahaye 135, she also entered the Scottish and Welsh rallies, plus an MCC rally in Torquay. That car also disappears at the end of the summer.

Making up for this somewhat, she managed to out-drive AC Lace on the 1938 Monte Carlo Rally, finishing 27th to his 47th, navigated by Elsie Wisdom. They were both driving Talbot-Darracq cars. It was a successful year on the stages for her; a month later, she and the Talbot were second in the Paris-St.Raphael women’s rally, behind Betty Haig’s MG. 

She returned to Monaco in the Talbot in 1939, and was 25th. Her co-driver was the famous pilot Amy Johnson, in what was her last rally. They had previously competed against each other in the Paris-St. Raphael. Betty’s bankruptcy later in the year was almost certainly a factor in the end of her own career.

After leaving motorsport and AC Lace behind, Betty married Brian Carbury and had two sons. The fact that she was still married to Gerald McQueen did not deter her; she possibly remained married to him until her death in 1971. It did not deter her either from marrying twice more, in 1944 and 1958. Multiple bigamous marriages were only one aspect of a dishonest and criminal side to her character, which becomes obvious after she left AC Lace. Throughout her life, she was convicted many times of theft and financial fraud, usually in the form of passing bad cheques from accounts that were either closed or non-existent. Brian Carbury was also convicted of cheque fraud in 1941 and both were accused of stealing savings from their children’s nanny in 1943. A pattern emerges of her being caught, then changing her name and carrying on as before. As she got older, she tended to move her date of birth forward by a few years with each name change.

Later, she spent a long period of time living in South Africa, where her father had previously had business interests. She married a waiter called Antonio Giocondi and began calling herself Babette Giocondi. Under this identity, she embarked on a high-profile career as a boxing promoter in 1961, alongside her husband who managed the fighters. They made very little money and attempts to bring South African boxers to the UK failed. There may have been an element of fraud involved in this. “Babette Giocondi” gave interviews to the South African press and claimed to have raced at Le Mans.

Betty died in a car crash in Worthing in 1971. She was a passenger in a Daimler Sovereign driven by pub landlord Brian Samain, who also died in the accident. At the time, she was calling herself “Babette Dale-Lace” and it took the police some time to discover anything close to her real identity.

(Thanks to Adam Ferrington for sharing his research on Betty/Phoebe/Babette.)

Pre 1950 Female Drivers: "Les Autres"

Joan Gerard

This post covers a few pre-1950 female drivers who do not fit into any of the other categories, chiefly those who competed in British National events in the late 1940s, and one driver who raced earlier, but not at Brooklands. US-based racers of the 1920s can be found here. Lady Mary Grosvenor now has her own post.

Nancy Binns - included in this section as she appeared on the scene in 1949, coming second in three different British National races at Silverstone and Goodwood. Her cars were two different Rileys. The following year, driving a Riley Sprite, she won several races at various meetings at Goodwood, Gamston and Silverstone. She changed to a Jaguar XK120 for the 1951 season, and was rewarded with a second and two thirds at Silverstone, but no wins. After this, she disappears from the entry lists.

“Miss D Chilton” - raced an Arrol-Johnston in the UK in the 1920s. She was second in the Unlimited class of the 1922 Sutton Coldfield Hillclimb. By this time, the car would have been quite old. Photographs of it exist and describe it as a 15.9 bhp model. She may have been related to John Chilton, who was advertising his Arrol-Johnston dealership in Worcestershire in 1910. In 1922, the Arrol-Johnston concern was being taken over by the women-run Galloway company, of which Miss Chilton may have been part.

Joy Ching – mostly competed in sprints and hillclimbs, but occasionally raced on the circuits. She took part in a VSCC Handicap at Silverstone in 1949, driving a Bugatti T37, but was not among the front-runners. As well as the Bugatti, she drove a BMW and an Alfa Romeo on occasion, both of which she shared with her husband, John, a car collector who raced himself. The Bugatti had previously been raced by May Cunliffe. Joy was a regular at the Brighton Speed Trials in the late 1940s, and usually did well in the Ladies’ classes.

Marguerite Dupêchez – winner of the Coupe de l’Auto Club at the first Journée Féminine de l’Automobile, in 1927. Her car was an Amilcar. The same year, she took part in a Ladies’ Handicap, also held at Montlhéry, and appears to have won. 1927 was not her first year of competition; she drove the Amilcar in the 1926 Rallye Féminin between Paris and La Baule. She was eleventh. In 1928, she competed in the mixed Paris-Nice Trial, still in the Amilcar. After this, she disappears from the entry lists.

Joan Gerard - one of the first lady drivers to resume motorsport after WWII. She was second in a British National race for 1500cc cars at Gransden Lodge, driving a Riley Sprite. Later, she used the White Riley, once raced by Kay Petre, in speed events. She also took part in a Ladies' race at Brands Hatch for 500cc Formula Three cars in 1950, and was third. She always competed alongside her better-known husband, Bob Gerard.

Marie Jenkins - one of Australia’s earliest female racing drivers. She drove a Bugatti Brescia at Sydney circuits in 1925 and 1926 and was the first woman to win a race at Maroubra Speedway. Her victory was in January 1926 in a “Motor Car Handicap” for cars between 1250 and 2000cc. She won her heat and the final convincingly, taking advantage of a generous handicap. This was her second race win, having won a Two-Litre Handicap at Aspendale in March 1925. Reports suggest that she was already a familiar name by then and she was sometimes described as being from Victoria. She was third in another handicap at Maroubra in December 1925.

Estelle Lang – raced and rallied in France in the late 1920s and early 1930s. She finished fifth in the first edition of the  Paris-St. Raphaël women’s rally in 1929. The same year, she entered the Journée Féminine de l’Automobile, and was one of the leading drivers, in a Rosengart. In a similar car, she won the 1931 Paris-St. Raphaël Rallye, after winning her class. She was a semi-regular in French races at the time, and a rival to both Violette Morris and Hellé-Nice at different times. In 1930, she entered the Tour de France Auto, in a Rosengart, and won her class at least. 

Lilian Heimann-Mayer – raced a 500cc BMW-engined Condor in German Formula 3, in 1949. She managed to finish a race at Schotten, but was not classified. She entered the Kölner Kurs race later in the year, but did not finish. Photographs of her exist at the Nürburgring that season as well, but no results. Later, in 1953, she drove a BMW in the Gaisbergrennen hillclimb, and won her class.

Yvonne Morel - MG owner and racer, active in the late 1930s. She competed in speed trials and hillclimbs mainly, including the 1937 Whitchurch Speed Trial, but also raced at circuits. In 1938, she drove a 1500cc MG at Crystal Palace for the Crystal Palace Plate handicap

(Image source unknown)