5 Star

A Legacy of Sound and Speed.

First time writer/director, David Lancaster, brings us a slice of iconic British engineering combined with a deep throaty sound that makes a man of my age weep with joy. Yes, this is the documentary for any British motorcycle fan. Big pots, loud noise. Philip Conrad Vincent brought the World pure engineering brilliance, that still breaks records today. Narrated by motorcycle World crossing Ewan McGregor.

Pure hell on the straightway – It’ll outrun the F-111 until takeoff.

Hunter S Thompson, on the Vincent motorcycle.

No other motorcycle in the World has caught the imagination in the same way.

Andrew Nahum, Curator and Author.

1940s – 50s Vincent set more speed records than any other manufacture.

Right from the off, you know you are in the hands of Vincent experts, Jay Leno (The Tonight Show with Jay Leno) owner of many classic Vincent inventions, Paul Simonon (The Clash), James Griffiths (Assembly line), daughter Dee Vincent-Day, and the man and legend John Surtees (Champion on 2 and 4 wheels).

The story starts with Philip being born in Argentina, before the family decided that Philip should grow up in the UK and that he would be enrolled in the elite Harrow school, Here his engineering mind was already firing on all cylinders. As with a lot of highly intelligent people, he was arrogant, standoffish and aloof, traits that he would keep for the rest of his life, even expanding on some of them later in life.

His father had a Model-T Ford, which broke down on the road and when the mechanic arrived, it was on a motorcycle. It’s speed impressed Philip and the die was cast. Harrow can boast many things about its alumni, but it also produced one motorcycle designer. But it was King’s College, Cambridge, that created the World’s youngest motorcycle manufacturer.

History was made in Stevenage, this is its story and the genius of Vincent and Phill Irving and their legacy, which still thrills petrol heads today and forever. Speed Is Expensive: The Philip Vincent Story is the comprehensive documentary of the life, success’s and the eventual fall from grace, told by the people that were there, risking their lives in the pursuit of record speeds and engineering perfection.

I’ve had thirty years experience in the ignorance of human beings.

Speed Is Expensive: The Philip Vincent Story is available on DVD and Digital

Special Features:

* John Surtees on the Vincent
* Owning a Vincent
* Working at the factory
* Phil Irving unguarded
* Jay Leno on Marty Dickerson
* Black Lightning or Grey Flash?
* Jay Leno speaks to Vincent’s Grandson
* The Montlhéry
* The amazing Barn Job
* Jay Leno: my love of The Vincent

Includes Limited Edition 24-page exclusive booklet – First 1,000 copies only