John Peter Wakefield also known as Johnnie, was born on 5th April 1915 in London.
He grew up to be a keen skier and by all accounts represented England. In 1933 he took up motorcycle racing and competed, including at the Isle of Man TT, finishing 18th in his group. He went on to make his Formula one debut in 1936 and won 3 Grand Prix’s.
In 1934 he learnt to fly.
In 1938 he married Kay Catherine, daughter of Colonel Heywood who purchased Caradoc Court Sellack in 1910.
He joined the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserves (RNVR) in 1939 and was enlisted as Lt JP Wakefield. Between 1939 and 1942, Johnnie flew in 8 different squadrons on 25 different aircraft.
He resigned from the Fleet Arm of the RNVR in March 1942 and then flew as a test pilot on spitfires for Vickers Armstrong. He was attached to Wargrave airfield in Berkshire, which had no formal aerodrome control. At the other end of the airfield was a RAF pilot training school. On the 24th April 1942 Johnnie taxied for take off in his spitfire, where he was confronted by a Magister RAF training aircraft. Johnnie swerved to avoid the aircraft as he became airborne and crashed and was killed instantly. He was 27 years old.