Last Friday (August 7) marked the 100-year anniversary of the first grand prix in Britain, which was held at Brooklands, the world's first purpose-built racetrack.

A celebration of that milestone at Brooklands included 120 grand prix cars, from 100-year-old Sunbeams and Bugattis to Ayrton Senna's 1991 Formula 1 championship-winning McLaren and modern-day machines. 

Fans could also see F1 icons such as the six-wheeled Tyrell, Michael Schumacher's 1992 Benetton, the 1998 Benson & Hedges Jordan and the Brawn GP car to name a few.

The event held three key demos. The first involved 100-year-old grand prix cars launching up Brooklands' Finishing Straight two or three at a time, through a hay bale chicane, before turning around on the banking and heading back towards the start to loop around for a few more laps. 

It was incredible to see these machines of all shapes and sizes being driven properly over the bumps of the now disused legendary start/finish straight. Some only had the driver but many had passengers riding along too, conforming to the regulations of the time where the mechanic would join the driver!

The second demo was the test hill climb. An uphill battle on foot (yes, The Race Extra walked up, but it was worth it to stand on the bridge crossing the banked circuit), this put the cars to the test as they launched upwards with the crowds cheering them on. These weren't modern cars but more of those of a 100-year-old vintage being pushed to their limits in celebration of what they helped create.

Lastly, there were demo runs on the Mercedes-Benz World test circuit - which was freely accessible to cross over to from Brooklands as the two venues partnered for this event.

Here, fans watched grand prix and F1 machinery open up and sing as they accelerated out of the 'wet circle' down the back straight. The sounds of the legendary Cosworth DFV, McLaren-Honda V12 and even the BRM V16 filled the area. Mighty impressive but, not to be outdone, the vintage GP cars were sliding around in front of the crowd showing just how much control it took to keep those pioneering cars under control. 

And if watching the cars on track wasn't enough, there was the chance to get in on the action too. McLaren had a pitstop challenge set up allowing spectators to change a wheel on a McLaren F1 car, as well as simulators - allowing avid amateurs the chance to set the fastest lap - and an exhibit of the McLaren Senna, featuring the real thing and Lego versions of it. 

And as if that wasn't enough, the cars weren't the only icons at Brooklands - as the Concorde was open for viewing, as well as the rest of the venue's aviation display. 

The Brooklands centenary celebration was truly a fantastic event - one that definitely deserves to become an annual occurrence.