Neil Cunningham

Neil Cunningham (12 June 1962 – 24 May 2016 ) was a New Zealand-born racing driver and stunt driver who competed primarily in British and European endurance races along with some roles in television and film. He was active in the British GT Championship and competed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. As a stunt driver, he featured in Quantum of Solace, a James Bond movie. He was diagnosed with motor neuron disease (MND) in 2010 and died in 2016 while living in Swansea, Wales.

Driving career Racing career Cunningham began racing at the age of ten in Mount Wellington.

The Morgan Aero 8 GTN driven by Cunningham in his 24 Hours of Le Mans debut in 2004. After leaving single seater racing, Cunningham won the 1996 British Eurocar V6 Championship and in 1998 he won the British Marcos Mantis Championship. His best finish in the series came in 2005, where he finished third in points alongside Ben Collins in a Porsche 911 GT3-RSR. He went back to Le Mans two years later, racing a Courage C65 in the LMP2 class. Barazi-Epsilon and Cunningham finished the race 21st overall. Later in his career, Cunningham began participating in historic racing events, winning the Silverstone Classic twice in a Jaguar D-Type. In 2011, during a Le Mans support event, Cunningham won his class in a Jaguar XKD 505 D-Type. His largest role as a stunt driver came in 2008 when he doubled for Daniel Craig in the opening scene of Quantum of Solace, the 22nd James Bond movie. The scene involves Bond in a car chase outside of Sienna, Italy.

Cunningham was rumoured to be The Stig, an anonymous character from the British show Top Gear. However, Cunningham denied this, saying "I always had the Stig in my mirror."

Personal life and death Neil Cunningham was born on 12 June 1962, in Auckland, New Zealand in the Papakura suburb. At the age of 7, Cunningham's parents split, and he moved with his mother to Gold Coast, Australia. His cousin, Blyth Tait, is an Olympic gold medalist in equestrianism.

In 2010, at the age of 47, Cunningham was diagnosed with MND. At the time of his death, the charity had raised over £100,000.