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Snapshot, 1930: The Campbell kids in a record-breaking mood

“Smile for the camera, kids.” World Land Speed Record holder Sir Malcolm Campbell’s children are clearly not amused by having their photograph taken while driving their toy cars…

These two rather unhappy-looking toy car drivers are the children of English racing driver and land-speed record holder Sir Malcolm Campbell. On the left, Jean (1923–2007) is at the controls of a replica of one of her father’s Bluebird land-speed record cars, while Donald (1921–1967), on the right – who went on to become a land- and water-speed record holder himself – commands an electrically powered miniature Bugatti. Hugely extravagant toys for the period, similar examples of these toy cars fetch extremely large sums when sold at auction today. Kids eh, there's no pleasing 'em...

Photo by FPG/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

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