Lewis Hamilton rocked Silverstone to its roots and sent 90,000 fans into a frenzy with a glorious British Grand Prix victory.

The McLaren star, who had failed to score a point in his last two races, had his legion of supporters singing in the rain at the end of a chaos-strewn event as wet weather sent his rivals into a spin.

Hamilton finished an astonishing 68.5 seconds clear of BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld come the conclusion of the 60-lap encounter, with a remarkable Rubens Barrichello third in his Honda, on the podium for the first time in three years.

The 23-year-old is now level on points with Felipe Massa, who could only manage 13th, and reigning world champion Kimi Raikkonen, who was fourth in his Ferrari.