Viking Cycles Limited was formed in 1939, producing 800 bikes per year. By the end of the Second World War production was over 2000 bikes per year. Then Viking decided to get into racing. The company sponsored a men’s professional team from the birth of road racing until the 1960s, and many successful amateurs raced on Viking bikes ‘loaned’ to them by the company. Beryl Burton never competed at the Olympics, as Women’s Cycling was introduced at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984, too late in Burton’s career; she was 47. Dave Russell, ‘Mum’s the Word: the cycling career of Beryl Burton, 1956–1986’, Women’s History Review Burton also managed to set or break over 50 National records and her 10-mile, 25-mile and 50-mile records stood for two decades before being broken. Burton’s 100-mile record stood for almost three decades while her 12-hour record still stands. We all know Maxine Peake is one of our country’s best stage actresses, but can she write? Absolutely.

Think you know a lot about Beryl Burton? Get to know more about one of the most iconic British female cyclists of all time… Burton only discovered cycling later on in life and was introduced to cycling by her husband, Charlie Burton. She took her first National medal in 1957; the start of an incredible cycling career.She dominated women’s cycle racing in the UK, across Europe and around the world, winning almost 100 domestic championships. I don’t think people who knew her outside of cycling necessarily knew she was a great cyclist…she wasn’t showy,” Wilson says. Beryl Burton also holds the women’s bicycle tandem record for the 10-mile distance, set with her daughter Denise, it took them just 21 minutes, 25 seconds. Beryl Burton Play Many of the participants – such as Jean Smith, Barbara Conway and Pauline Hunter – have since been largely forgotten, although the Croucher sisters, Brenda, Maureen and Carol, of the East Bradford Cycling Club, are perhaps better remembered. Valerie Rushworth was national road race champion in 1964 and won 11 British Championships between 1959 and 1966, going on to represent Great Britain internationally, as a rider and later as coach and team manager.She set a 12-hour time-trial record in 1967, covering 277.25 miles, beating the men’s record by 0.73 miles. The cast of four, who play multiple characters, have great comedic skill and excel under Rebecca Gatward’s creative, physical direction, even if this theatre sometimes feels a little too big for such a character-driven homespun yarn.

Despite being awarded the MBE in 1964 and an OBE four years later, Beryl Burton remains remarkably unknown outside of sporting cycling circles. Had she been alive today there can be no doubt that she would be a household name, leading the present generation of British cycling champions: Chris Froome, Victoria Pendleton, Shanaze Reade, Chris Hoy, the newly crowned Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins, and Britain's first medal winner of 2012 Lizzie Armitstead from Otley. Watching this film it is a wonder that cyclo‐cross isn't more popular: as gruelling as the tour de France, and much more enjoyable to watch!Beryl used to work on a rhubarb farm, even when racing, which was run by cyclist Nim Carline. She worked 12 hour shifts every day during the winter. Women weren’t included in the Olympic cycling program until 1984, when one event, a road race, was introduced in Los Angeles. Beryl Burton was 47 when that happened, still racing but well past her best. As her powers declined and her dominance waned, Burton refused to retire. In 1984, when Burton was 47-years-old, the first women’s Tour de France was held and women were allowed to compete in the Olympics for the first time. She lobbied for a place in both teams but was ultimately not selected. I think a lot of these things get judged on Olympics and Tour de Frances and obviously women weren’t allowed in those events so it’s a bit harsh to judge her on two events she wasn’t allowed to ride in,” Wilson says.

Joyful, uplifting and utterly delightful ... Get on your bike and get to Dalston!” – LondonTheatre1 Wilson’s book, along with a play written by Maxine Peake in 2012 and William Fotheringham’s 2019 biography, aims to relocate Burton from the relative wilderness to a place among the greatest British athletes of all time.I spoke to a journalist called Sue Mott who interviewed Beryl in the early 80s … and she said that she had never met a sportsperson who was so driven and focused as Beryl even having known those sorts of people as well [like Steve Redgrave and Andy Murray],” he says. Peake's writing is full of funny and caring moments, which are all realised by the cast with dedication ... it is impossible to puncture the play's warmth” – BroadwayWorld UK A gloriously happy, funny and moving play ... puts the record straight and restores the legacy of this amazing woman” – Islington Gazette Beryl Burton’s cycling success reads like the script of a Hollywood film. Five times world pursuit champion, thirteen times national champion, twice road-racing world champion and twelve times national champion. Her accolades include time trials, former world record holder, former British record holder, numerous sports awards, an MBE and an OBE.

That inability to stop wanting to be the best - part of me loves it and part of it is quite tragic as well. It’s also quite moving because she just was who she was,” Wilson says. “There was a sort of authenticity to it. She just kept going and kept going because she wanted to win and didn’t really care about the medical advice.” Burton worked on a rhubarb farm, cleaned houses, and worked on the biscuit counter at the local Co-op supermarket alongside her record-breaking exploits. Beryl Burton and her daughter Denise both set a record for a British 10- mile ride on a tandem bicycle which took them only 26 minutes and 25 seconds! Her first play is about the life of cycling legend Beryl Burton, which is great news for fans of underappreciated women from the north with the name Beryl who had previously only heard of Beryl Bainbridge.

The camera is on a low section of a field looking up at a cyclist who rides down the hill, then gets off her bike, lifts it over a stone wall and runs down the rest of the hill carrying the bike. A couple of other cyclists do the same thing. The play has since been adapted and will be shown at the West Yorkshire Picture House between the 30th of June 2014 and 9th July 2014. Leeds will be hosting the Grand Départ of the 2014 Tour de France – a great time to go and watch the Beryl Burton play. Beryl Burton Book Maxine Peake, a British actress, wrote and starred in ‘Beryl: a Love Story on Two Wheels’, a radio play based on her life, with contributions from her husband Charlie Burton throughout.