John Colum Crichton-Stuart, 7th Marquess of Bute (26 April 1958 – 22 March 2021),^[1] was a Scottish peer and racing driver, best known for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1988. He was known as Johnny Dumfries, or, after he succeeded his father as marquess in 1993, John Bute.^[2][3] He attended Ampleforth College, as had his father and most male members of the Crichton-Stuart family, but did not finish the normal five years of study.

Quick Facts The Most HonourableThe Marquess of Bute, Born ...

The Most Honourable The Marquess of Bute
Born	John Colum Crichton-Stuart (1958-04-26)26 April 1958 Rothesay, Buteshire, Scotland
Died	22 March 2021(2021-03-22) (aged 62)
Other names	Johnny Dumfries John Bute
Education	Ampleforth College
Occupation	Racing driver
Spouses	Carolyn Waddell ​ ​ (m. 1984; div. 1993)​ Serena Solitaire Wendell ​ ​ (m. 1999)​
Children	4
Parent(s)	John Crichton-Stuart, 6th Marquess of Bute Nicola Weld-Forester
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	British
Active years	1986
Teams	Lotus
Entries	16 (15 starts)
Championships	0
Wins	0
Podiums	0
Career points	3
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0
First entry	1986 Brazilian Grand Prix
Last entry	1986 Australian Grand Prix
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	1987 – 1991
Teams	Kouros Racing Silk Cut Jaguar/TWR Toyota Team Tom's Courage Compétition
Best finish	1st (1988)
Class wins	1 (1988)

Close

Bute was born in Rothesay into one of Scotland's oldest families, the son of John, 6th Marquess of Bute, and Nicola Weld-Forester. He was a descendant of the 3rd Earl of Bute, an 18th-century prime minister.^[4] His courtesy title as heir to his father's peerage was "Earl of Dumfries".^[2]

He had two older sisters, Sophia, who later married the musician Jimmy Bain, and Caroline, who died in a car accident in 1984. He also had a younger brother, Anthony, who became an art dealer in the United States.^[2]

The children's nanny was Helen Lightbody, who had served as nanny to Prince Charles and Princess Anne, and they were brought up in Mount Stuart House on the Isle of Bute. Bute later recalled how easy it was for a child to hide in the house.^[2]

Heir to a large fortune, the young Dumfries was educated at Ampleforth College, which he left at the age of sixteen and set about pursuing a career in motor racing.^[4]

In 1984, Bute, then known as Johnny Dumfries, was the sensation of the F3 season, scoring 14 race victories on his way to winning, and completely dominating, the British Formula 3 Championship for Team BP (Dave Price Racing). He also finished runner-up to Ivan Capelli in the European Formula Three Championship that year. In 1985, he graduated to the newly created FIA International Formula 3000 Championship, initially competing for Onyx Race Engineering before switching to Lola Motorsport. It was a disappointing season, with a sixth-place finish in Vallelunga being the highlight of the year.^[5]

In 1986, he made his breakthrough into F1, and raced a single season for the JPS Team Lotus. He was a late addition to the team, apparently as a result of Ayrton Senna not wanting Derek Warwick as a teammate.^[4] He competed in 15 Grands Prix for Lotus (not qualifying at Monaco), which used the turbocharged Renault engines and scored 3 championship points.^[6] During most of the 1986 season he was usually one of the midfield drivers, on par with the Tyrrell drivers Martin Brundle and Philippe Streiff.^[7][8] He was replaced for 1987 by the Japanese driver Satoru Nakajima as part of Lotus's deal to use Honda engines from that season onwards.

In 1988, Bute scored the biggest racing victory of his career when he won the Le Mans 24 Hours, driving a Jaguar XJR-9 for Tom Walkinshaw's Silk Cut Jaguar Team alongside Dutchman Jan Lammers and Englishman Andy Wallace.^[9]

Bute also participated in the 1-hour endurance race in the 1988 British Touring Car Championship at Donington Park with fellow ex-F1 Briton Guy Edwards for Andy Rouse's Kaliber Racing team in Ford Sierra RS500, finishing third overall and in Class A.

He died of cancer in March 2021.^[10]

Bute ranked 616th in the Sunday Times Rich List 2008, with an estimated wealth of £125m. In the 2006 list, he ranked 26th in Scotland with £122m.

He lived with his family in London and at his ancestral seat, Mount Stuart House, 5 miles (8.0 km) south of Rothesay on the Isle of Bute. In December 2020 he was charged with breaching COVID-19 restrictions for allegedly travelling to his Bute home from London.^[11][12]

In 2007, another family country house, Dumfries House in Cumnock, Ayrshire, was sold to the nation for £45 million.^[13]

In 1984, he married Carolyn Waddell; they were divorced in 1993. They had three children:

• Lady Caroline Crichton-Stuart (b. 26 September 1984)
• Lady Cathleen Crichton-Stuart (b. 14 September 1986)
• John Bryson Crichton-Stuart, 8th Marquess of Bute (b. 21 December 1989)

On the Isle of Bute in February 1999, he married his second wife, fashion designer Serena Wendell.^[14] They had one child:

• Lady Lola Affrica Crichton-Stuart (b. 23 June 1999)