EYNTK about Billy Monger from Celeb Race Across the World
A celebrity version of the much-loved, drama-filled Race Across the World has returned to our screens this week, featuring stars including British racing driver and pundit Billy Monger, aka 'Billy Whizz' to fans.
He is joined by sister Bonny as they race other stars including McFly's Harry Judd and his mum, All Saints singer Melanie Blatt and her mum, and weather presenter Alex Beresford and his dad (contestants are typically in pairs with family members), well, across the world (from Marrakesh in Morocco to Tromso in Norway).
So, here's everything you need to know about Billy, a fab addition to the line-up (and Bonny, of course).
Who is Billy Monger?
Billy, 24 (who got his nickname from the character in The Beano) is an F4 racing driver who competed in 2016 and 2017. His passion for driving was first ignited when his dad gave him his first go-kart at just three!
But sadly, after suffering an awful car crash, his journey behind the wheel took a pause (though he still managed to inspire us all with a comeback, more on that in a bit).
What happened with Billy Monger's crash?
Less than three weeks before his 18th birthday (April 2017), Billy was severely injured in a crash while racing at Donington Park Circuit, almost losing his life.
Thankfully, this wasn't the case, but he did have to have amputations to both of his legs, his left one above the knee, and his right below the knee. The driver he collided with, Patrik Pasma, didn't suffer any serious injuries.
Other well-known racing drivers, including Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, banded together at the time and supported a JustGiving page for Billy, raising more than £500,000 to help fight the injuries, going towards any care, treatments and therapies required.
"After being involved in one of the most horrific crashes motorsport has seen, Billy Monger is a teenager that needs little introduction. Thousands of people have already watched the haunting footage of the crash which left Billy fighting for his life," a statement read at the time.
"Sadly Billy has had amputations to both legs."
The statement also went on to say: "[He is] well known in motorsport for being not only an extremely talented young driver but for also being a truly special 17 year old – loved and admired by his team, fellow competitors, supporters and of course his devoted family. Billy is a complete one-off, a cracking young man with a spark that makes it impossible for anyone not to like him. Full of spirit, Billy is one of those people that instantly lights up a room. His positive, plucky outlook on life is not only hugely endearing but also incredibly inspirational and it’s phenomenal to see how respected and loved Billy is."
What is Billy Monger doing now?
So, is he still racing? Overcoming great adversity, Billy returned to racing in November 2017 (he and his family appealed to the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) to change their regulations to allow disabled drivers race in appropriately modified single seaters after passing safety checks).
In 2018, he was awarded the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Helen Rollason Award for outstanding achievement in the face of adversity.
Now, he is a commentator for Channel 4 F1, and has worked on the W Series (an all-female single-seater racing championship), and Channel 4's Paralympic Games coverage, plus more. Not to mention he also completed a 140-mile triathlon (walking, cycling, and kayaking) to raise money for Red Nose Day in 2021.
And of course, him and his sister are now both excited to be taking part in Celebrity Race Across the World (despite Billy not having watched the show before!).
"To be honest, when we got approached for it and it was suggested that I do it with Bonny, I wasn’t too sure Bon would be up for doing it," he told the BBC.
"The one thing that did make me think that maybe she would be up for doing it was the fact that it was about travelling because we’ve spoken about going travelling before. So, I was a bit unsure myself, I'd not watched the series before, and then I spoke to Bon about it and she said it could be quite cool. So, we sat down and watched it and got more and more into it and then decided why not!"
'Bon' added, "Yeah, we've always spoken about travelling and going and doing something together, but we’ve never actually been organised enough to do it. With this, it's not organised for us, and we have to do it ourselves so it's kind of like being thrown in the deep end and you've just got to do it."
And they both reckon they're 'in it to win it'!
When Does Celebrity Race Across the World 2023 air?
The star-studded show, filmed last year, was originally intended to to air on Wednesday 13 September, but was delayed due to the tragic earthquakes in Morocco. Celebrity Race Across the World instead hit our screens on BBC One on Wednesday 20 September.
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