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Keith Campbell biography
Author interview
November 2025 – Guy 'Guido'
Allen
We recently got a chance to chat with Don Cox, author
of the recently-released Keith Campbell book. He
revealed the long and windy path to completing a
fascinating story
Author Don Cox has recently added another title to his remarkable body or work: Keith Campbell – Australia’s First Grand Prix World Champion.
Campbell’s rise to the pinnacle of motorsport was the work of years of struggle, most often as a privateer. He gained the 350cc GP World Championship in 1957 and perished in a race crash in 1958.
Along the way he also tried his hand at car racing, at one time campaigning a Maserati 250F.
He was part of the Australian travelling racing circus, roaming Europe in the 1950s, surviving on prize and appearance money, sometimes with the occasional sniff of sponsorship.
For Cox, the book was the result of years of gathering material, sometimes in tandem with other projects.
“I bought this book, the 1969 title Motorcycle Racing by Peter Carrick, in New Zealand and here’s this story of an Australian rider I had never heard of. The idea of doing a story on him sat around until Will Hagon and I started working on what became Australian Motorcycle Heroes.
“We were fortunate in that there were still some primary sources around, such as Eric Hinton and Bob Mitchell.
“Then I got hold of George Campbell’s number in Melbourne and started talking to him. It snowballed from there. I kept making notes about it and then I worked on what became Circus Life.
“My original idea for that book was I would focus on six
riders. Then Jamie McIlwratih said if you’re going to do
these guys, you had better do them all – so we ended up
with a magnum opus. When you look back on it, I must have
been taking brave pills that day!
Above: Keith Campbell and Bob Brown relax against
Brown's bus, near Lake Como in 1955. Pic by Bob Edmonds.
This is one of many illustrations in the book.
As for the Campbell book, “I started making notes about this in 1988 and we started getting serious in 2006 during a trip to Europe with our son, and that’s when we managed to find Cadours (France, where Campbell died). We found the local library and the librarian gave us directions to the circuit. We go out there and you could just about run the race again. The grid markers and start-finish line are still there.
“We’re there on a blazing hot day in June and wander into a bar. There is a copy of the Moto Revue report of the meeting where he died. The barman immediately recognises what it is and points to this guy up the back, watching the horse races. He says ‘Roger over there saw that accident.’ I got his phone number and, working with a Mauritian interpreter, we did an interview.
Another key source: “The late Bob Edmonds who went away
with Keith in 1955: I rang him and asked if he kept a
diary. He said ‘No’ and a minute later added, ‘But I kept
all the letters I sent home to my sister.’ And he’d bought
himself a decent camera and took photos. He sent the
negatives up to Sydney for one of my colleagues to scan.
I’ve been sitting on all of that since 2008 or so.
“I had all these files to produce the Campbell book and
it didn’t really progress from there until three years
ago, when I started doing it seriously.
“It’s the first book I have done where I started at the preface and wrote it in order. I really wanted to do a serious biography – this guy deserved it.”
Don is rare in that he has gone to considerable trouble
to highlight and recognise the women who formed an
integral part of the travelling racer circus of the 1950s.
“I could never understand why people don’t do that.
“Edmonds told me that, when he was there in 1955, Bob
Brown was touring around the place with two women from
Sydney – one of them (Margot) married Diulio Agostini, the
Guzzi rider." They were to establish a bike shop in
Mandello (which still exists). "I looked it up and sent an
email. In 24 hours I receive a reply from Alice, the
eldest daughter, who was still involved in the business.
She said Margot was in Sydney and gave me her phone
number! She’s now in her early 90s and still going.”
Bettie Phillis was another key source. “I got to know
Bettie from 1988 and we’re still friends.”
For those who may be new to Don’s work, the Campbell book is typical of his very readable style. It opens up a story that is fascinating in its own right, while providing an insight to a long-gone and very different era.
It’s highly recommended.
You can order it direct from the author via email: krcampbellbook@gmail.com
It's priced at $66, posted in Australia.
Don also has copies of Circus Life available.
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