Launched in 1957, Scalextric was the brain child of Bertram ‘Fred’ Francis, the talented inventor behind a range of mechanical tin toys. The first Scalextric cars were tin too and powered by a small electric motor, instead of the more common clockwork cars of the time. This new toy took off and by 1958 Francis had sold his idea to Tri-ang, who looked to invest. Tri-ang produced newer cars in plastic and the range of vehicles offered started to expand.