Lights Out, Full Throttle: The Good the Bad and the Bernie of Formula One

by Johnny Herbert, Damon Hill

Lights Out, Full Throttle is the hilarious account of life in the F1 pit lane from two legends of the sport, Damon Hill and Johnny Herbert.Damon and Johnny here. Motorsport's answer to Ant and Dec, just a lot more comprehensible and, all in all, a wee bit taller. Between us we have about 100 years’ experience of driving cars quickly and have competed in 261 Grand Prix spawning 25 wins, 49 podiums, one World Championship and 458 championship points. We even have a win at Le Mans to our names, as well as two smashed ankles, a broken arm, a broken wrist, a broken leg, about sixty broken ribs, a pierced upper thigh that missed Johnny’s twig and berries by millimetres, and a bruised ego or three.Basically, we’re two middle-aged men who are both what you might call physically compromised. That said, contrary to popular belief, we still have a modicum of bladder control and can talk Formula 1 with the best of them. Which brings us to our book. Despite its immense popularity, when it comes to things like humour and absurdity, Formula 1 is not exactly a ride on the big dipper and in that respect it hasn’t buttered our parsnips for decades. Well, nil desperandum boys and girls because we, Damon Graham Devereux Hill, OBE, and John Paul Herbert, No BE, are here to put the F back into Formula 1 by ditching aerodynamics, clean air and tyre degradation in favour of honest, forthright opinions and apocryphal stories involving automotive derring-do. And, derring-don’t!

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Audiobook, Biography

332 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 9, 2020

Reviews

[Katie.dorny · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was witty but not as knowledgeable as I was expecting.

I do now want to read both Hill’s and Hurbert’s autobiographies though.

[Colin Murtagh · Rating 3 out of 5]

The double act has been a staple for a long time, so here’s the latest. Former F1 driver Johnny Herbert and former F1 Champion Damon Hill have become a bit of a fixture on the Sky F1 coverage. As one of the few sports that managed to get back quite quickly, having a book out can build upon the extra coverage.

Put the two of them together and they will have an opinion on every facet of their sport. So, they have 20 different topics to go over. Ranging from Monaco, to Bernie, Team Orders, to the future of the sport. That’s a lot of ground to cover.

I can see what they are trying to do here, and it sort of works. It feels like the two of them have been locked in a room and the transcript published. It means it feels very chatty, with a few snarky side comments, which does get quite wearing after a while. It tries to carry the humour the two of them naturally have, which doesn’t always translate to paper.

It’s not a bad book, but it’s not as good as it could be. Maybe next time they should look at getting some stronger editing.

[Kate thebooklover · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lights Out, Full Throttle ~ Stories from the Pit Lane By Damon Hill and Johnny Herbert is a unique look at many topics relating to Formula One.

These two give their own unique and at times quite humours take on all things formula one from Team Orders, Safety, Lewis, circuits to the yips and knowing when to quit.

As a huge fan of formula one these two are often featured in the coverage over a race weekend, their knowledge of sport both as a competitor and commentator is outstanding. I found this book both interesting and funny in the conversational style that it was written I could certainly see these two sitting down and having these conversations about the topics in the book, it lends itself perfectly to being a great audiobook.

I’d like to thank Netgalley and Pan MacMillan Australia for granting me an advanced copy of this book it hits the shelves this week and I’m looking forward to purchasing a physical copy!

[G · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very easy book to rattle through

The two authors personalities and friendship are the biggest part of the reading experience, but it still does have a couple of gems of insider knowledge from the sports history.

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Essentially this is an extended conversation between two old racing drivers. It tries a bit too hard to be 'chatty' at times but it's an undemanding read and quite entertaining if you're an F1 fan.

[Ollie · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was good i like

About fast cars zoom zoom

3.5

[Ken Kirkberry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable and some insight into a sport I watch.

[Luke Fuller · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read; a lot of stuff I'd read or heard before. Quite a few editorial mistakes which I suppose are partly due to the quick turnaround and COVID but still took a bit away from the experience as they were very noticeable at times.

If you're into F1 then I'd definitely recommend it and Johnny Herbert is always a good laugh. I couldn't help but hear his voice and see his cheeky face when reading some of his parts.

[Alexandru Siclovan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite insightful whenever Damon and Johnny talk about their careers. Loved the bits about the 94 Japanese GP or the 99 European one. They find a way to capture the magic around Silverstone, the auras of Colin Chapman, Adrian Newey, Gordon Murray... but tend to speculate rather childishly about various abstract aspects of F1. Call it humor, let's say.

Unsurprisingly, you get a subjective feeling of Lewis being put on a pedestal compared to Michael, who clearly caused a lot of nuisance back in the day to both Brits. And they admit limiting their critique due to the skiing accident the German suffered in 2013.

It's really hilarious at times, perfect for the holiday season. Though, I was surprised to see so many mistakes in this book, betraying the fact that the publishing house only cared about spelling and never dared to fact check the two legends.

Examples: Webber scored two points on his debut in Melbourne 02 not just one, across the whole book you have Benetton spelled right and wrong (Benneton), Ronnie Petersen instead of Peterson, Tyrell instead of Tyrrell, Nika Lauda, European GP of 98 when it's obviously 99... far too many to ignore!

[Gordon Ralph · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good read,! I was really pleased as to how this book flowed.The Banter between Johny Herbert And Damon Hill really comes accross well in this book ...You can easily see then sitting down in front of the fireplace nattering about the good ol days and everything else F1 fans would talk about..loads of great anicdotes , brilliant historic events, and lots of gossip . If you love your F1 and especially these two Gladiatiors then this book is for you!....
ps i did take some time off over the Christmas period whilst reading this ...it didnt take two months for me to read it ...just 2 weeks ....its a great read i promice you!

[Kris Boardman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good book focusing on Damon and Johnny views of various topics in F1 covering the future of the sport, Silverstone, Lewis's success, when to quit driving and how Bernie sold something he never owned. And lots more

Light hearted read, with lots of banter between Damon and Johnny. It was written during COVID, which they don't hide. But you have the impression it was written with Damon and Johnny on a Skype / teams call, with the call being recorded and edited for clarity after and turned into a book. Nevertheless, if this was the case still a good read.

[Georgie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book. I was a fan of F1 in my teens about the time when Johnny Herbert and Damon Hill where at the top of their game. I've recently become reacquainted with F1 as my teenage son is a massive fan. Reading this was very nostalgic at times. My only criticism is that it could get confusing at times, who was 'speaking' so I was constantly looking back. Made me want to read Johnny Herbert's autobiography now!

[kerry turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finished ! This one was quit funny in places. I think you really have to no them well to get their humour with each other 🤣 otherwise you would just think that their bloody rude ! Which To be fair, there are 🤣😂 !! Some of it can get a bit repetitive if you’ve ever read either of their biography’s or you watch them regularly on F1 channel but still worth a read, even just to read them bitching about each other ! 😁

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly entertaining journey through various F1 topics. Johnny & Damon bounce off each other which works well when telling it from each of their perspective.

It's from 2021 so not up to date & a lot has changed since then. Damon states that Lewis will never join Ferrari!

A good listen for any nostalgic F1 fan

[Megan Hawley Steinfeld · Rating 4 out of 5]

This books works really well as an audiobook. The format is essentially two old pros discussing various aspects of F1; listening to the authors read it makes it feel more genuinely a conversation, and definitely adds to the humor.

[Alex Murray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my kind of structure. It was essentially a transcript of a prolonged interview. Some chapters were interesting and kept me reading, such as their views on drivers and teams. However, I did flick through most of this book.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love F1, so I found this funny and interesting. It was great to hear the stories behind the headlines and their thoughts on various aspects of the sport .

[Andrew Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Funny and the stories are really interesting about F1. Hoping they can write another book like this in the future

[Stephen Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny read from two characters of F1. Some stories, some serious points, plenty of light-hearted banter too - as would be expected!

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just a couple of old racers having a chin wag about all things F1. Funny, insightful and they certainly do make quite the pair. I reckon the book will date sooner rather than later though.

[Philip Clewer]

Interesting read. You can imagine Johnny Herbert and Damon Hill sitting down chatting as you read it.

[Robert Black · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not a big F1 fan but I found it enjoyable and humorous, probably more on for petrol heads though

[Renée Dahlia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another research book. This one is easy to read in small doses and feels like a podcast but written down.

[Gareth Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 'banter' style works OK most of the time. Some interesting points and generally enjoyable, if a little lacking on any new material or revelations...

[lee jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

Realy interesting look at f1 with lots of laughter could not stop listening really enjoyed the facts and insights in to realy memories

[Mark Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

an unusual F1 book format but very enjoyable. Still pretty to the point in 2022 but they were about optimistic with Masi

[Dilys Guthrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant book. It was like sitting in a room with Damon and Johnny listening to them chatting.

[Anthony McConachie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was not sure about the format and struggled through chapter 1. I then got into it and it is a good read especially with the changes in F1 and personnel since the book was published. Enjoyable.

[Alena M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but thought the narration was a bit forced.
Still, as a lover of F1, was an interesting listen.

[Olly · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read however some parts go off on a bit of a tangent and you lose track of what the book is supposed to be about