He's not so much of a celebrity nowadays but people who were alive in, say, the 1970s might remember the huge posthumous reputation of the land and water speed record holder, Donald Campbell (and his equally famous father, Sir Malcolm). Campbell was a representative of a particular sort of upper-class, old-fashioned heroics of a kind we don't see much these days - perhaps for the best. I'm sure many of us will have a memory in the back of our heads of that B&W film of his boat
Bluebird somersaulting into Coniston Water on his last, fatal record attempt in 1967.
As well as being in the Ghost Club, being deeply superstitious and having an interest in the paranormal, Campbell was something of a haunted person himself. Peter Underwood moved in the same circles as Campbell and spoke to him several times: he confided that he'd often had visions of his father prior to land and water record attempts and was convinced the latter was somehow guiding him, including physically guiding the craft / car. Campbell also speculated that his mid 1960s car
Bluebird CN7, the spectacular bit of engineering shown below, was in some way 'possessed', and performed as well or badly as it wanted to.
Underwood also spoke to Campbell's widow after his death. She said yes, she'd since seen him several times, tried to ignore it, but felt he was always "helpful" rather than scary - an encouraging presence. So perhaps rather like Campbell's father had been for him.
You clearly needed incredibly hefty
cojones to even consider the water speed record: it was so dangerous about half of those attempting it in the past century were killed in the attempt. Accordingly there is a little story about Campbell playing cards with some of his engineers (or in some versions, 'consulting' the cards) shortly prior to his final attempt in 1967. He drew the same two cards, the Ace and Queen of Spades, as Mary Queen of Scots turned over the night prior to her execution and, always superstitious, commented that he hoped this wasn't a sign he was about to lose his head. When his remains were recovered from Coniston Water in 2001, it was established that he'd probably died when
decapitated by his craft's windscreen.
Having said all the above I'm very pleased to add that this incredibly risky record has for many years now been held by Ken Warby of Sydney...who went over 300mph using a boat he built in his own back garden with a $250 surplus jet engine.