A 71-YEAR-OLD Speedway fanatic who devoted decades of his life to documenting the motorsport is looking for someone to take on his treasure-trove of memories.

Michael Bratley, of Queens Avenue, Kidlington, has collated thousands of photographs and reels of film from his years as an Oxford Cheetahs fan.

The former Oxford Instruments engineer followed the team religiously at Oxford Stadium from 1962 to 1985 as well as other teams in the UK and abroad.

He said: "My family won't be interested in the collection when I die, and I would like to give them away to somewhere that would find them interesting.

"I would like it to go to a local association that appreciates what was done, rather than someone who would just want to scrap them afterwards."

In his younger days Mr Bratley attended Speedway events every weekend, once going for five seasons - about 140 matches - without missing a single meeting.

His 10 albums of photographs, in both black and white and colour, and 40 full-length films document the highs and lows of the sport across Europe.

As well as attending world finals in Sweden, Poland, Denmark and Germany he was among the lucky few to go to the final in LA, the only one ever held in America.

He said: "We went on a special organised trip through the British Speedway Association, with a tour of California, the world final and three other matches.

"It was a special occasion. You wouldn't see it very often because it would be too expensive for English players."

At Oxford Stadium in Sandy Lane during the peak of its popularity, Mr Bratley cheered on big names such as Hans Nielsen, Simon Wigg and Martin Dugard.

He said: "When Hans was there that was fantastic. They went through a season where they didn't lose a match."

Since 2012 the stadium itself in Blackbird Leys has been closed, with little movement from owners GRA Acquisition to either revive the site or sell it to keen bidders.

In recent months the local Save Oxford Stadium campaign has seen increased activity, while Oxford City Council explores the possibility of a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) to seize back control of the site - and potentially bring Speedway back to the city.

Mr Bratley said: "It's going to be very difficult to get it back, but it should be done. People in that area need another sport. We need houses, but but there must be other places to do it and this has been a stadium for a long time."

The collection will be donated to individuals or groups with a clear interest in Speedway that can provide it with a good home. It will need to be picked up from Mr Bratley.

Anyone interested should email hsomerville@nqo.com