Murray Walker – Formula 1 commentary and ex-Dunlop legend dies

Murray Walker, whose voice became virtually synonymous with Formula One, has died aged 97. Walker commented on his first Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1949 and became a full-time F1 commentator in 1978, a position he held for the next 23 years. Such was the esteem in which Walker is held within the Formula One fraternity, a constellation of racing stars have celebrated his life. Following the news of Walker’s death, which was announced over the weekend of 13 and 14 March 2021, seven-time Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton summed up their words: “The iconic voice of our sport and a great man, thank you for all you did, you will never be forgotten”.

While Walker was best known for his Formula One commentary, and while F1 accounted for the vast majority of his career, a lesser-known fact is that Walker began his automotive career working for Dunlop. It all began when Walker was taken on in a scholarship role at Fort Dunlop in Erdington, Birmingham. In 1947 he became assistant to the company’s advertising manager in the tyre division. He held a number of advertising roles at Dunlop before rising to the role of overall Dunlop advertising manager, with his remit covering both the tyre division and Dunlop’s general product division as well. After this, he was headhunted to work for agency McCann-Erickson, where he was involved in their high-profile Esso and Mars accounts.

But Walker’s involvement with Dunlop didn’t end there, with the – by this point – world-famous Walker returning to Dunlop to work in a number of brand ambassador over the years. Here his character, civility and charm shone through as Sports Prototype Cup owner and race director, marketing and communications company PitBox91 director and former Dunlop communications manager James Bailey remembered:

“Before his commentary career, [Murray Walker] was a Dunlop advertising manager in the 1960s. We invited him to host a Dunlop BTCC event a few years ago. He was booked for a couple of hours but stayed for ten. He took the time to talk to every guest and then insisted on helping pack up the chairs and banners at the end of the day.”