{{short description|British motorcycle racer}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2015}} {{Use British English|date=January 2015}} {{Infobox motorcycle rider | name = Beryl Swain | image = File:Beryl j swain.JPG | caption = Swain aboard her 1962 TT race entry 50&nbsp;cc Itom motorcycle | nationality = [[United Kingdom|British]] | birth_date = {{Birth date|1936|1|22|df=yes}} | birth_place = [[Walthamstow]], England | death_date = {{Death date and age|2007|5|15|1936|1|22|df=yes}} | death_place = [[Epping, Essex|Epping]], England | 50 Active years = [[1962 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season|1962]] | 50 Manufacturers = [[Itom]] | 50 Race Starts = 1 | 50 Race Wins = 0 | 50 Podiums = 0 | 50 Total Points = 0 | 50 Poles = 0 | 50 Fastest laps = 0 | TT Contested = 1 ([[1962 Isle of Man TT|1962]]) | TT Wins = 0 | TT Podiums = 0 }} [[File:Beryl_Swain_-_Waltham_Forest_Heritage_blue_plaque.jpg|thumb|Beryl Swain - Waltham Forest Heritage blue plaque]] '''Beryl Swain''' (née '''Beryl J Tolman''', 22 January 1936 – 15 May 2007)<ref>[http://www.genesreunited.co.uk/search/results?sourcecategory=birthsutf002c%20marriages%20utf0026%20deaths&firstname=beryl&lastname=tolman&birthyear=1936&birthyear_offset=0&collection=births%2b%2526%2bbaptisms England and Wales births] ''www.genesreunited.co.uk'', Retrieved 2015-01-18</ref> was a female [[road racing|road racer]] of solo [[motorcycle]]s from the London area. In 1962, she was the first woman to compete in a TT race for solo motorcycles on the [[Isle of Man TT]] course.

== Early life == Beryl Tolman was born on 22 January 1936 and brought up in [[Walthamstow]], in North East London.{{citation needed|date=March 2024}} She worked as a senior secretary at [[P&O Ferries|P&O]] in the City until she married Edwin Swain, a motorcycle shop owner,<ref>[https://www.britishpathe.com/video/girl-racer Girl Racer 1962] ''www.britishpathe.com'', Retrieved 2021-03-10</ref> in 1958.<ref>[http://www.genesreunited.co.uk/search/results?sourcecategory=birthsutf002c%20marriages%20utf0026%20deaths&firstname=beryl&lastname=tolman&birthyear=1936&birthyear_offset=0&collection=marriages%2b%2526%2bdivorces England and Wales marriages] ''www.genesreunited.co.uk'', Retrieved 2015-01-18</ref>

== Racing motorcycles == She was noted for being the first woman to compete in a TT race for solo motorcycles on the [[Isle of Man TT]] course,<ref name=":0">[https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/europe-travel/italy/beryl-swain-m0jp9wpvdwq Beryl Swain The first woman solo motorcyclist to finish in a TT race] ''www.thetimes.co.uk'', Retrieved 2021-03-10</ref> a rare occurrence to this day on one of the world's most famous races held on closed public roads. This 1962 upset led the male-dominated world of motorcycle racing to revoke her international licence via the introduction of a minimum weight limit which she could not meet, due to the perception of the sport being too dangerous for women, and the resulting ban on female entrants persisted until [[Hilary Musson]] competed in 1978.<ref>"Will Beryl race on the Island again?" ''[[Motorcycle News]]'', 27 Feb 1963, p.9. Accessed 13 April 2024.</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/isleofman/content/articles/2008/01/17/swain_feature.shtml ''Goddess of the Gas Pedals''] BBC Isle of Man, 13 November 2014 Retrieved 2015-01-18</ref><ref>[https://www.ttwebsite.com/ladies/profiles/hmusson/index.htm Female Rider Profiles on the Isle of Man TT Website – Hilary Musson<!-- Bot generated title -->] ''www.ttwebsite.com'', Retrieved 2021-03-10</ref><ref>"First Lady. Hilary Musson and Yamaha". ''Motorcycle Sport'', August 1978, p.302, p.310. Accessed 16 September 2022</ref>

Swain finished 22nd on a [[50 cc]] race-prepared [[Itom]] after two laps of the [[Snaefell mountain course|Mountain]] circuit in the [[1962 Isle of Man TT|1962 Race]]. Her average speed was 48.3&nbsp;mph after her bike lost top gear (of the three-speed transmission) on the second lap.<ref>''Stealing Speed'' by Mat Oxley, p.179</ref> This was the first time a 50cc event had been included in the Island's programme as from 1962 the class carried World Championship points.<ref>[http://www.iomtt.com/TT-Database/Events.aspx?meet_code=TT62%20%20&era=3 IoM TT Database 1962] ''www.iomtt.com'' Retrieved 2015-01-18</ref><ref>[https://www.autotrader.co.uk/EDITORIAL/BIKES/news/34439.html Isle of Man celebrates 100 years of TT magic – Bike Trader UK – News and Reviews Hub<!-- Bot generated title -->] ''www.autotrader.co.uk''</ref><ref>[http://www.classic50racingclub.co.uk/the-tt-goddess.html History: The TT Goddess of the gas pedals - by the Isle of Man BBC.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161012141526/http://www.classic50racingclub.co.uk/the-tt-goddess.html |date=12 October 2016 }} ''www.classic50racingclub.co.uk'', Retrieved 2021-03-10</ref>

==Motorcycle Grand Prix results== {| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" |- | '''Position''' | width=20| 1 | width=20| 2 | width=20| 3 | width=20| 4 | width=20| 5 | width=20| 6 |- | '''Points''' | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |}

([[Template:Motorsport driver results legend|key]]) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:95%" ! Year ! Class ! Team ! 1 ! 2 ! 3 ! 4 ! 5 ! 6 ! 7 ! 8 ! 9 ! 10 ! Points ! Rank |- ! rowspan=1|[[1962 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season|1962]] ! 50cc ! Itom | [[1962 Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix|ESP]] | [[1962 French motorcycle Grand Prix|FRA]] |style="background:#cfcfff;"| [[1962 Isle of Man TT|IOM]]<br /><small>22</small> | [[1962 Dutch TT|NED]] | [[1962 Belgian motorcycle Grand Prix|BEL]] | [[1962 German motorcycle Grand Prix|GER]] | [[1962 East German motorcycle Grand Prix|DDR]] | [[1962 Nations motorcycle Grand Prix|NAT]] | [[1962 Finnish motorcycle Grand Prix|FIN]] | [[1962 Argentine motorcycle Grand Prix|ARG]] | 0 ! — |}

== Later life == After her racing career was cut short, Swain, who was previously an office worker, embarked on a retail management career with [[Sainsbury's]] grocery supermarkets around the London area.<ref name=":0" /> She retired to [[Woodford, London|Woodford]], [[Essex]], and later [[Epping, Essex|Epping]], becoming secretary to WI local branches of the [[Women's Institute]] and helping organise meals on wheels for the elderly. Towards the end of her life, she suffered from [[Alzheimer's disease]], and died on 15 May 2007, aged 71.<ref name=":0" />

== Commemoration == A [[blue plaque]] was erected in Beryl Swain's honour at her former home at 18 Grosvenor Park Road, Walthamstow, London E17 9PA by [[Waltham Forest London Borough Council|Waltham Forest Council]] as part of the local Waltham Forest Heritage scheme on 31 May 2019.

==Sources== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[http://www.britishpathe.com/video/girl-racer Girl Racer - Beryl Swain at British Pathé] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110523143318/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article1883921.ece Times Obituary - Swain, Beryl] (non-public access, transcript of content can be found [https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.obituaries/qFh6d94bpYg here]) *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070610003358/http://www.motocicliste.net/sport/storia2.asp History of women in the TT]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swain, Beryl}} [[Category:1936 births]] [[Category:2007 deaths]] [[Category:People from Walthamstow]] [[Category:Sportspeople from the London Borough of Waltham Forest]] [[Category:English motorcycle racers]] [[Category:Isle of Man TT riders]] [[Category:Female motorcycle racers]] [[Category:British motorcycle racers]] [[Category:Women motorcyclists]] [[Category:20th-century English sportswomen]]