It is with great sadness that we learnt of the passing of Barry Dukes, former Club Chairman (1968-1969) and one of the Porsche Club founders.
Barry was born on the 14th March 1935 in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. In 1951 Barry joined the de Havilland Aero Technical School where his interest in motor sport continued and his career moved to the Rolls Royce Aero Division where he worked on the Blue Streak and Harrier Jump Jet programs.
Barry was among the original members of Porsche Club GB having attended the first official Club meeting at Chateau Impney on 22 October 1961.
Although a life-long Frazer Nash fan, Barry was inspired to buy a 1500 Super 356 Coupe aged just 22 after reading of the exploits of famed motoring journalist Denis ‘Jenks’ Jenkinson as he drove a 356 Coupe all over the European continent while he reported on motorsport events.
Barry recalled attending the very first Porche Club meeting at Chateau Impney when he saw about 30 Porsches and noted that, up till then, he had never seen so many together.
Barry was an engineer by trade and soon offered technical articles for the newly created Porsche Post. He went on to sit on the Midlands Region Committee, then the National Committee before becoming Chairman in 1968.
One very happy memory was meeting his soon-to-be wife Rita when she attended one of Barry’s technical workshops and BBQ day in Derby – they married two years later driving a 1955 Speedster from the wedding reception. They honeymooned touring Europe in an 1952 356 coupe enjoying some fabulous scenic driving.
Barry later described their meeting in 2021 as a ‘beginning of an association which happily continued for 55-plus years’ and, indeed, continued until his recent passing. Their sons John and Andrew were born in 1968 and 1969 and they had fun and games squeezing them into Porsche 356s!
Barry passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his family on Sunday 21st April 2024. He is survived by Rita and sons John and Andrew.
We will provide more information about Barry and the early years of Porsche Club in a future issue of Porsche Post.
