Most people, even those with only a fleeting interest in motorsport, know something of Damon Hill’s story.
From the day he was born, he’s been in the spotlight thanks to the fact his father was two-time Formula One world champion, Graeme Hill.
Hill, ultimately, emulated his father but the path that led the Englishman to his own F1 world title, in 1996, was far from smooth.
As Hill acknowledges himself, his racing career has been covered in detail.
But there’s many, arguably more interesting, aspects to Hill’s life.
Indeed, it’s likely that Hill would never have become a F1 driver had it not been for the tragedy that struck his family when he was just 15 years old.
In November 1975, the light-aircraft that Hill’s father was piloting crashed, killing all six men onboard.
It was this event which would shape the rest of Hill’s life.
And, with the release of a new documentary film entitled ‘Hill’, which will have its world premier at the Glasgow Film Festival on Thursday, the 64-year-old peels back the curtain on a life which has seen him endure monumental challenges and scale incredible heights.
“Having been part of this famous family, I've been scrutinised throughout my life and a lot of my story has been covered,” says Hill.
“What hasn't happened is for the family side of things to be shown and the emotional effect of being in Formula One.
“The racing is normally the only visible part - what you don't see is ordinary life carrying on in the background. So that's what this film is about.”
The film about Damon Hill's life will premier later this week (Image: Vince Mignott/MB Media) Growing up, Hill’s father was often absent from family life due to his commitments as an F1 driver, with Hill’s interests lying in motorbikes, rather than racing cars.
The plane crash, and the demise of his father, however, changed the course of Hill’s life entirely.
Soon after his father’s death, he dipped his toe into single-seater racing and this would be the first steps on a journey that would take him to the pinnacle of his sport.
Hill’s desire to succeed, though, was complex and he admits was fuelled, at least in part, by the loss of his father.
"What was the purpose of me racing?," he asks.
"There was an element of me trying to reinstate something that was destroyed or lost. Maybe I was trying to right some of the wrongs of the past - that was an aspect of what was going on, but I don't think it was the whole thing.
“You can’t entirely concoct motivation - it’s either in you or it isn’t."
In 1992, Hill, than aged 31, became test driver for Williams but it was two years later, having become Williams’ number two driver behind all-time great, Ayrton Senna, in which Hill experienced the most extreme lows the sport can possibly present.
The first came at the San Marino Grand Prix, when Senna was killed in an accident whilst leading the race. It was a moment that shook not only the racing world but global sport and for Hill, being inside the bubble rather than on the outside looking in like most observers was something of a surreal experience.
Perhaps surprisingly, though, witnessing the dangers of the sport at such close quarters did little to dampen his will to pursue a career in F1.
"The Senna accident was traumatic for everyone but, of course, mostly for his family,” he says.
“They were devastated but the fans also felt it very keenly.
“For me, it was a challenge because I was Ayrton's teammate, although I hadn't been a teammate of his for long and I would never claim to know him very well. But when you've got someone in the same room with you in the morning and then they're not there in the afternoon, it’s quite shocking.
“But as drivers we are, sad to say, a bit short of imagination and I think most of us just can't imagine stopping. Driving's what we do and it's what we love so we just get back in the car and hope the odds improve.”
Hill (R) alongside his Williams teammate, Ayrton Senna (Image: Getty Images) Senna’s death meant Hill was elevated to Williams’ top driver and he ended-up going for the '94 world championship against none other than Michael Schumacher.
In the season’s final race, with Hill and Schumacher going head-to-head for the world title, the German collided with the Englishman - many believe intentionally - causing both to retire from the race and handing Schumacher his first world championship.
It was a devastating blow for Hill and for that reason, amongst others, he always found it difficult to have much affection for his younger rival.
“Schumacher was a difficult person to get to know. And a difficult person to like,” Hill recalls.
“He was supremely confident to the point of being aloof and I think he was quite happy to cut off any relationships before they even got going.
“So there was never much going on between us other than the driving rivalry.”
(Image: Getty Images)
The following year was a disappointment for Hill despite finishing second in the championship but going into ’96, he was confident, in part due to the mental toughness that his previous campaigns had fostered, that a first world title would come his way.
“Elite sport is supposed to take you to the very edge of what your capability is and you want to find out what your limit is," he says.
“So going into ’96, I was pretty confident and after ’94 and ’95, things did feel easier in comparison.
“In the end, ’96 was relatively straightforward."
Hill’s route to the world championship was uncomplicated, with eight Grand Prix wins ensuring he beat his Williams’ teammate, Jacques Villeneuve, to the title.
The Englishman departed Williams at the end of the ’96 season and despite continuing his racing career for three more years, never again scaled the same heights.
He ended his career, though, content and admits his father would have scarcely believed what his son had achieved in F1.
Hill remains unsure of the path he would have taken had his father not been killed. One thing seems certain, though; Hill’s life would not be nearly as film-worthy as it became.
“If you could have told my dad when he was alive that I'd be World F1 champion, he would just never have believed it. I don't think he could have conceived of me being able to achieve that,” he says.
“I don't know what I would have been doing if he hadn't died, I can only imagine.
"Maybe I would have been working with his team - I might have been a truckie or something. It's just impossible to know where I’d be today.”
Hill’ will premier at the Glasgow Film Festival ’25 on Thursday
