 Grahame-White was the first to attempt the journey. He planned to take off at 5: 00 am on 23 April 1910, near the Plumes Hotel in the London suburb of Park Royal. A crowd of journalists and interested spectators assembled there from about 4: 00 am, with more arriving by car, until about 200 – 300 were present. The Times described the sky as "clear and starlit", and the weather as "very cold, as there was a slight frost." Grahame-White arrived at about 4: 30 am and began to prepare his Farman III biplane. The aeroplane was brought into the field from the yard it was stored in, and its seven-cylinder 50 hp rotary engine was started. Once the engine warmed up, Grahame-White took his seat. Several people wished him well, including his sister, mother and Henry Farman. He guided the biplane for about 30 – 60 yards across the frosted grass, and took off at about 5: 12 am, before altering his direction to head for the start of the course — a gasometer at Wormwood Scrubs, within the required five-mile radius of the Daily Mail office in London.
