Graham Walker died in 1962 after a long and varied career with motorcycles.
He served during the First World War as a dispatch rider for the Royal Engineers Signal Service. After the war, Walker had a successful racing career with Rudge, Sunbeam and Norton. Riding a 493cc Sunbeam he was a member of the victorious British International Trophy Team at the ISDT held in Buxton 1926 and Ambleside in 1927.
Road successes included winning the Ulster Grand Prix on a Rudge Ulster in 1928, the first road race win with an average of 80 mph. Walker also won the 350cc class at the 1931 North West 200, again on a Rudge. He rode many times in the Isle of Man TT, winning the lightweight (250cc) class in 1931, and became president of the TT Riders Association.
In 1935, after his motorcycle racing career had finished, Walker was employed by the BBC as a commentator for motorcycle racing events on television and radio.
He was the editor of Motor Cycling from 1938 to 1954, after which he took up a directorship at the Montagu Motor Museum, where his enthusiasm for preserving historic motorcycles played a part in the museum having opened a motorcycle section in 1956.
Graham made one other important contribution to motorsport - his son, Murray.
