THE telemovie about King of the Mountain Peter Brock may have pulled no punches, but the motor racing legend’s brother Phil said it is an important story that must be told.
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The two-part series Brock aired on Sunday and Monday nights and did not shy away from Peter’s life off the track.
His marriage splits and affairs, allegations of domestic violence by his second wife and former Miss Australia Michelle Downes, financial struggles and his death in 2006 while competing in a Western Australian car rally were all covered, as was the legal tussle over his will.
Phil said he was not surprised that this brother’s story was brought to the small screen.
“He was doing a good job racing and getting in better teams and it wasn’t really that surprising,” he said.
Even though Phil had not seen the mini series before it went to air, he was very interested to see how they portrayed Peter’s life on and off the race track.
“It’ll be really interesting to see,” he said during Sunday’s Bathurst 1000.
“I just hope it [the retelling of Peter’s story] is a very successful thing. We need to keep this thing alive because there were so many people that related to him.”
Phil said many fans reminisced with him about the time they had met his famous brother.
“Not one story was about Peter Brock the race driver, it was about him as a person,” he said. “Fans tell it like it is. They never forget how they he treated them.”
Peter’s former partner Julie Bamford was portrayed in the telemovie by actress Natalie Bassingthwaighte.
Ms Bamford sat alongside Peter’s brothers Phil and Lewis at Sunday’s race and said it had been a pleasure to meet the woman who portrayed her.
Peter’s younger brother Lewis said there were other aspects of the racing legend’s life that the public do not know about.
“He was really involved with charities,” he said. “If you spent a day with Peter Brock it was just exhausting.”
Lewis said Ms Bassingthwaighte’s research into the role will be a benefit in the final telemovie.
“Having met Natalie Bassingthwaighte … I have confidence she will portray Julie in the right way,” he said.