David Marshall Coulthard MBE is a British retired racing driver from Scotland, later turned presenter, commentator and journalist. Nicknamed "DC", he competed in 15 seasons of Formula One between 1994 and 2008, taking 13 Grand Prix victories and 62 podium finishes. He was runner-up in the 2001 championship, driving for McLaren.

Coulthard was born on 27 March 1971 in Twynholm, Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland, one of three children to road haulier Duncan Coulthard and Elizabeth Joyce Coulthard née Marshall. His family was connected to motor racing: his grandfather competed in the Monte Carlo Rally and his father drove karts, becoming Scottish National Champion. From an early age motorsport was where his interest lay, later listing Formula One World Champions Jim Clark, Nigel Mansell and Alain Prost as his childhood heroes. Coulthard was educated at Kirkcudbright Academy, achieving eight O-grades.

Coulthard became known for having a smooth driving style. This style allowed him to perform at circuits where chicanes are common. However, this also meant that he was not suited to modern-day circuit configurations where a majority of the corners are taken at a medium-speed.

Coulthard's helmet design is blue and consists of a white saltire on the top which resembles the flag of Scotland and the four tips are trespassed from the top of the chin area. Coulthard borrowed a helmet belonging to Michael Schumacher for the 1996 Monaco Grand Prix as his regular helmet was suffering from steaming up during the weekend. Upon Schumacher's first retirement in 2006, he suggested to Coulthard that he would swap one of his own helmets for one of Coulthard's, which was agreed by Coulthard. For the 2007 Japanese Grand Prix, he changed his design to grey with a stylised saltire on the sides of his helmet, as an homage to the late World Rally Champion Colin McRae.

Coulthard has lived for some time in Monaco, and also owns homes in London, Belgium and Switzerland. He owns several luxury hotels in Britain and is a former owner of the Columbus Hotel Monaco, which is located in Monaco's Fontvieille.

On 2 May 2000, while he was leasing the Learjet of friend David Murray, the aeroplane developed engine trouble en route to Côte d'Azur International Airport in Nice and crashed while attempting an emergency landing at Lyon-Satolas Airport, France. Coulthard, his then-fiancée the American model Heidi Wichlinski and personal trainer/bodyguard Andy Matthews survived; Murray's personal pilot David Saunders and co-pilot Dan Worley died. Coulthard and Wichlinski ended their engagement before the beginning of the 2001 season, which was followed with a series of inaccurate newspaper reports about alleged affairs with other women.