John Barnard on carbon fibre.

Car designer John Barnard is a Formula 1 legend. If motor sport is an orchestra of materials then John is its Simon Rattle. Over a garlanded career he worked for Ferrari (twice), Arrows and Prost. But his reputation was forged at McLaren, where he created the first car with a carbon fibre chassis. Lighter and safer, it won a lot of races too. 

More recently he has been working on a range of carbon fibre furniture with Terence Woodgate for British manufacturer Established & Sons.

In this episode we talk about quite how controversial it was to use carbon in the early ’80s, with other designers (and the media) believing that in a crash the new car would go up in a cloud of black dust. We also discuss his relationships with some of the biggest names in the sport, including Ron Dennis, Alain Prost and the great Enzo Ferrari; his childhood in North Wembley; the importance of beauty in what can be a brutal business; the profound effect the death of Ayrton Senna had on F1; his innate understanding of a vast range of materials; as well as how he got the nickname The Prince of Darkness. 

You can find out more about John’s work for Established & Sons here: establishedandsons.com

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