The Morris Marina..

This is a Best of British failure. That it sold in numbers over almost a decade is sad testament to the undemanding nature of many car buyers at the time.

This car, other than the body, was a parts bin special. A nasty plastic interior, the worst colours imaginable, and vague steering were three attributes that it shared with other British auto nasties.

I drove a Ital shooting brake for maybe seven miles way back when. Every time that I approached a turn, I was never sure how the car would negotiate it. There were never two turns alike. It was scary.

The fact that it shared engine and suspension parts with the ubiquitous MGB did nothing for it at all. It was designed as a dreary vehicle, and it didn’t ever disappoint in that way.

Top Gear have it right. Take a look..

And yes, there really is a Morris Marina Owners Club..

So who bought a Marina? Essentially, any undemanding buyer who also didn’t like foreign imports.

Daley, Daley, Daley..

The world’s greatest decathlete ever, and he was British (still is)..

He was the first athlete to win Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European titles and hold world record.

Before him, British Olympic athletic interest was none too high because we didn’t have too many outstanding competitors. Daley changed that, and how we roared. In case you do not know what constitutes a decathlon, read this..

The decathlon requires proficiency in ten events - the shot put, discus and javelin throws; the long and high jumps; the pole vault; the 100 m, the 400 m and the 1500 m run and the 110 m hurdles.

You have to be good to win the Olympic decathlon just once. Our Daley won it twice.. in a row.. yayyyyyyyy.

He began competing in the decathlon in 1975 and won every event he entered from 1978 until 1988, winning gold medals at the 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games.

It has been suggested that he lights the torch for the 2012 Olympics. I can’t think of anybody more appropriate, can you? Maybe he will whistle the British National Anthem again, for old times sake. Yayyyyyyyyyyy..

You will never read anything bad about Daley. He may have been a little irreverent at times, but that was his to be. He was and always will be one of Britain’s true greats, and we all love him for what he is, and what he did..

For more about our Daley, start here..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daley_Thompson

Supermarine Spitfire

Designed by R.J Mitchell, built by Supermarine of Southampton (and many shadow locations around the country), the Spitfire was one of the pair of Merlin engined single seater fighters of WWII which defended Britain’s shores during September 1940 and beyond.

The photo shows a Mk IX which would not have been flying during September 1940, but the basic design and elliptical wing shape never changed. This one would be wearing the universal C wing.

Was it the best fighter of all time? It wasn’t always the fastest, and it couldn’t go into a dive like the BF 109 could, but most Brits would say ‘yes’. In truth, the German BF109 was equally good. It came down to the quality of the pilot and the way in which each pilot and aircraft was deployed.

What you have to understand is that the Spitfire was seen to have saved ‘Blighty’, so there will obviously be a soft spot for it. People ‘in the know’ have a healthy respect for both.

However, it is generally accepted that the Spitfire was the most beautiful aircraft to ever take to the skies, and it still is. The sight and sound of a Spitfire has universal appeal, and everybody within visual and aural distance will always turn to the direction of the noise, even Germans. The video below shows a Spitfire XIX flying at a German airshow.

The XIX was powered by the Rolls Royce Griffon, developing twice the power of the original Merlin. Griffon engined Spitfires turned a five blade prop, and sometimes a pair of contra-rotating four blades to counteract the immense torque of the Griffon. Pilots of the Spitfire would most likely tell you that the Merlin was the nicer to fly.

Enjoy the video. There are many more on YouTube.

If you would like to know more, see here..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermarine_Spitfire

Ford Escort Mk 1

Replacing the Ford Anglia, the Escort in standard trim was not exactly the most exciting car ever made, especially with the 1.1L engine. Shown is the two door model, four seats, rear wheel drive. It was cheap, cheerful and very popular. Ford released a 1.3L variant, and 1300 E and GT models which had more go in them and better interiors..

So why have I included it in Best of British? Well, Escorts were not all made equal. This simple car was just waiting to bloom, and did it ever.

See this? The Ford Escort RS2000. Still the same front grille, but now with go-faster stripes, fancy alloys and a power plant to die for. Along with RS1600’s and Mexico’s, all available as road cars, these wolves in sheep’s clothing became one of the all-time great rally cars. In go-faster trim, I think that this was/is the best looking Ford in the UK.

I believe that this was the very first European Ford, a joint venture, but it was way more popular in the UK than anywhere else, and a sheer delight to watch and hear on the RAC Rally. It showed that you didn’t need a blown and injected 7 litre power plant in a car with the proportions of a canal barge to have fun and be a real winner.

The Escort Mk 2 carried on the sporting traditions that the Mk 1 set, but after the Mk 2 came the front wheel drive versions.

The great thing about the early RS Escorts was you had the fun of high power rear drive but in a nicely controllable package, not unlike the BMW E30’s.

For more on the Escorts, take a look here…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Escort_(Europe)

Blackpool Illuminations

It started with eight arc lamps on 1879, and this is what it looks like today. The lights are 12 and 24 volt which saves greatly on electricity consumption, and also makes them safer for Blackpool weather. The trams get a dose of lights too.

Above is a view of part of the lights, looking North towards the Tower.

You can walk the Promenade, drive by car (there is a charge for each car), travel by the bus that you rode in on, or take an open top tram ride along them  There are six miles of lights, and walking the entire length is not recommended..

I got to see it as a kid, but my family preferred the South Coast, Brighton, Bournemouth, Weymouth as far as Torquay. I have also taken others to see it in latter years. Other seaside places have lights but not on this scale. It really is quite unique.. BUT..

Blackpool is Northern, crass, the land of candyfloss and home to the ‘Kiss Me Quick’ cowboy hats,  It has always attracted types which may or may not be what you want your kids to see. It can be very busy, and queues and long waits are not uncommon. Blackpool is what it is, and you either love it or hate it. Probably the best time to do the lights is mid-week during early October.

Whatever, it is a British classic, and I have always believed that all kids should be allowed to see it all at least once in their lives

All about Blackpool Lights.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackpool_Illuminations

Coventry

Why this city? Well, it has had a chequered history, being the most heavily fortified city in its time, the best preserved Mediaeval City, Motor City, and now the City of Peace and Reconciliation. It is also my home city although I was born outside of the city limits at the time. Don’t think that I am biased towards it on that last count. I have always seen it as an ugly, grimy city, but it’s history and success is irrefutable. 

In early years, it was a weaving centre, and has been again in later times, it ‘housed’ Royalist soldiers captured during the English Civil War, defended against a huge attack by Royalists in 1642, became a centre for watch and clock manufacturers and subsequently sewing machines which required the type of skills watchmakers had.

It then turned to bicycles, the first bicycle as we know it being produced by the Starley family. engines, motorcycles, cars, buses, military vehicles, and aircraft. Want to see the list? You should..

http://www.micma.co.uk/themarques.php

The coachbuilders and painters hand-painted every Coventry City Council bus until the services were taken over by West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive (a merger when Coventry was taken out of Warwickshire and unceremoniously linked with Birmingham), and even after the merger were responsible for the ‘rolling’ ads where the entire surface of the bus would be used for a company ad.

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, and this website has pictures galore..

http://www.historiccoventry.co.uk/main/main.php

By the time you have been through the two links, you will see why I have included Coventry in the ‘Best of British’

A few memories of my own..

Up to the age of five, I lived in close proximity to the Standard-Triumph motor works, and well remember the new Standard Pennants, Eights and Triumph TR’s being driven out of the gates.

After that, the family moved just outside of the city limits, and the ride to junior school was made on a Manchester style Daimler CVG6. Bus #333 (now preserved) was my favourite, and the trip each way cost 3d (that’s the old money).

Around the age of ten, I used to go into town on Saturdays, meet up with friends to see the Saturday morning picture shows at the Empire Cinema or sit in the Wimpy Bar on Cross Cheaping or maybe the Mushroom Cafe in Lower Precinct, or maybe take a bus out to Forum Bowl on the Walsgrave Road.

By 1970, I had left school and was a member of the motorcycle fraternity. Coventry Ring Road was being constructed, and we were all itching to try it out. Not a road for the faint of heart, the Ring Road intersections were something of a lottery, but exciting for a teenager of course.

A quick tour.. 

The traffic lights were not at the intersections of Foleshill Road and Gulson Road originally. You just had to take your chances..

I lost touch with Coventry after 1989. The centre was changing, and I didn’t feel as if it was my city any longer. Twenty two years on and I have a hankering to go back and see what they have done. Funny how you don’t miss anything until it’s gone.

Best British Meal

Ha-ha. If you are expecting to see Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding or fish and chips, think again.

The best British meal comes out of the Asian community in the Hollywood Road area of Birmingham England.  

Can you guess what this is? I will tell you. It is Chicken Tikka Masala on a bed of Pilau rice, accompanied by a kebab and Naan bread. Doesn’t it look good!!

This, along with Chicken Tikka and Tandoori chicken was my staple diet for years. I used to frequent the Raj Bhuj (King Place) in Royal Leamington Spa more times than I can remember. Mohammed and his crew always gave top service, top food and, if you were a regular as I was, would customize meals for you if they knew when you were coming by.

OK, so what was/is it that captured the palette of the Brits? Well, it’s a mild taste to die for, you will not die eating it, and the meat content is always good and juicy. Anybody can eat this meal, even the most squeamish.

I used to have it with a Keema Naan, which is a regular Naan but with spiced lamb inside. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm

Note that almost the entire menu at any present day Indian restaurant in the world started life on the Hollywood Road, Birmingham England. It is as Indian Asian as Chinese food is real Chinese, and bears little resemblance to food served in India, unless of course they have caught on to the magic of Chicken Tikka Masala and its menu mates.

Good eating..

Is it a ship? No..

Is it a plane? No..

It is the SR.N 4, the world’s largest ever passenger and vehicle carrying hovercraft. The name is an acronym for Saunders Roe Nautical, by the way. They made other things, notably flying boats, and big ones too, but under the name Saunders Roe..

Anyway, this is a Mountbatten class SR.N,, and one of these crossed the English Channel in a record 22 minutes with over 250 people and 30 cars on board. Impressive, eh. Also impressive was the huge size, noise and fuel consumption. They were not cheap to run, but always paid there way.

For passengers inside, it was noisy and the ride was not exactly smooth, despite the fact the hovercrafts do not sit in the water. But it was fast, and a unique way to travel. Unlike the venerable channel ferries, they couldn’t go out in overly rough seas, and the Dover Straits are some of the roughest seas anywhere, trust me, especially in the winter.

They don’t run anymore, which is a shame, but one or two have found their way into museums. Meanwhile, the ferries continue to plug across the Channel at various points, and of course, the Eurostar whisks under the sea all through the year apart from the odd time when the wrong kind of leaves or snow are on the lines.

Hovercrafts can be found in other places. The US used SK-6’s as part of their military fleet, and the Canadians used two SR.N 6’s for search and rescue on the west coast, but I believe that they are now decommissioned.

For photos of all of the types, see here.. http://www.bartiesworld.co.uk/hovercraft/saunders.htm

The Royal Air Force

Formed in 1918, it is the oldest air force in the world and was originally called the Royal Flying Corps. It isn’t the largest, and it doesn’t always have the best equipment, but put pilots with the right aircraft and miracles happen.

A link to the RAF’s official website… http://www.raf.mod.uk/

The RAF’s finest hour was the Battle of Britain, fought through the summer and autumn of 1940, where pilots from all corners of the British Empire plus Poland, Czechoslovakia and Palestine took to the skies over Southern England and the English Channel, gallantly fighting off the German Luftwaffe and the threat of invasion.

Winston Churchill in part of a speech made in August 1940, said “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few”. Too right. Pilots didn’t grow on trees and we were running out of serviceable aircraft at the time.

A few of the mechanical heroes from different times:

• Sopwith Camel
• Bristol F.2
• Avro 504
• Hawker Hurricane
• Supermarine Spitfire
• De Havilland Mosquito
• Avro Lancaster
• Avro Vulcan
• Gloster Meteor
• Hawker Hunter
• Hawker Harrier

There were many others of course, far too many to mention here. Also, one must not forget the guys who had the guts to get into the aircraft, some with minimum training, and take on enemies of our British Isles and its Empire.

The Original Mini

This is it, the Morris Mini-Minor. At the front, a transverse 848cc engine: front wheel drive, external door hinges, sliding windows. At the back, more room that you had a right to expect, hinged rear windows, a small boot made even smaller by the inclusion of a spare wheel, fuel tank and battery.

Most importantly, it had a wheel at each corner, literally at each corner, almost zero overhang. Combined with a low centre of gravity and very direct rack and pinion steering.

Along came a guy called John Cooper, famous for making winning Formula One cars at the time. He reworked the A series engine and produced the 970cc and 997cc Mini Cooper and the 1071cc and 1275cc Cooper ‘S’. This is the car which would win the Monte Carlo Rally in 1964, ‘65 and ‘67. Anybody could go to a Mini dealer and buy either of the Coopers, and more than a few did. With a bit of preparation and a Halda meter, club rallying became a reality. To stop the Coopers, they were fitted with twin caliper disc brakes at the front.

Rallying success opened the gates for every tuning company in the country to produce ‘go faster’ bits, and trust me, they did. A standard mini could become anything you wanted it to be with cash and the time to do the work.

My experience with a Mini

I bought a Mini Clubman Estate because I liked the idea of extra space. While travelling in North Wales, I encountered a hill so steep that the Mini could not make it to the top. I vowed that on my return, the Mini would not only make it all of the way up, but that it would do it with attitude to spare.

I acquired an MG Metro engine, Stage 3 ported head, 286 cam, Maniflow manifold and exhaust system, K&N filter, Cooper S brakes, finned aluminium rear brake drums to bring the rear track in-line with the front, and Hi-Lo suspension units all round.

The result was around 80bhp at the wheels, huge torque which could get the car moving in 3rd gear, a top speed just shy of 100mph, and more fun that words can put across. It was as fast through corners as it was down straights, and first gear was only used on steep hill starts.

The combination of induction roar through the K&N and the Maniflow system underneath was magical, but not on long trips down motorways. In the country, it was just incredible.

The only trouble was in towns and cities. Power came in at over 3000rpm, and if one happened to hit that in traffic, the car would surge forwards, firmly pressing the occupants back into the racing seats.

I picked up parts from auto fairs, and performance specialists like Minisport of Padiham. I would like to make a special mention about Minisprint Engine Developments (MED) of Leicester, in particular the owner, Steve Whitton, who did a great job with the engine and setup.

Problems with all Minis

Corrosion kills them all in the end. The ‘A’ panels ahead of the doors are double skinned and always go first in the panel behind. By the time that it surfaces, you have major problems. The drains around the roof line are bad, around the headlights, as are the rear doors on the Estate versions. Corrosion underneath at the back kills the rear brake pipes, sub-frame, electric fuel pumps on earlier models, and the handbrake cables and quadrants. Rear brakes are prone to seizing, and the battery boxes in the saloons have been known to fall out while in motion.

At the end of the day

Minis are priceless despite the lack of comfort, the noise and corrosion issues. You can’t have more fun for the money, and the shape is as timeless as ever it was. If ever you get the chance, drive one. I guarantee that you will want one after the experience.

For more reading, look here.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini

Television et al

Hurrah for Auntie Beeb. What a TV service it is. the world’s largest broadcaster and the only TV service which broadcasts world-wide. In the UK, there are no adverts as the BBC is funded by television licence fees and other means.

BBC programming is the best in the world, as is the BBC Natural History Unit. Comedies and dramas produced by the BBC are appreciated the world over.

The photo shows the home of BBC TV, but the head office is still in its original location at Broadcasting House. Both buildings are icons of the London landscape.

Even commercial TV is not as bas as other countries. They are only allowed seven or eight minutes of advertising per hour. In other countries, it is the ads which stick in one’s mind more than the miniscule program slots in-between.

Germany was first with high quality 625 line transmissions, but British TV quickly took up the cause. Colour didn’t come until 1967, but British TV programs didn’t need colour to make them good. When Coronation Street was first broadcast in colour, there were complaints from many fans that colour took away from the dirt and grime in which the soap was set

So there you have it. British TV in a nutshell. The best of everything, and it still is

BTCC

Better known as the British Touring Car Championship, it al started in 1958. The great thing about it was that the cars used for racing were cars you could see every day on the roads of Britain. There were all kinds from all over Europe. Even today, you can still see and recognize cars that you can buy in a showroom.

So, what makes BTCC special? Basically, real road cars in a regular rough and tumble for first place is what you get. Without doubt, it is the most exciting track racing you will ever see. The nearest competition as far as watchability is concerned would be the Australian Bathhurst 500.

Touring car happens in many countries, but for me, the best will always be BTCC. This website will give you some insight into Touring Car racing popularity..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touring_car_racing

Want to see BTCC in action? . Enjoy

Top Gear tribute

Code breakers

This is Bletchley Park today, front facade. It was here that Axis codes were broken during World War II. It is also home to the first modern computer.

In 1938, the GPO laid a lot of telephone lines in, and the first code breakers moved in during August 1939. The location was picked because it was close to London, and an LMS Railway station was close by. There was also easy access to and from the most revered of British learning establishments, Oxford and Cambridge Universities, both supplying more than a few of the ‘brains’ behind the mission.

It is now home to the National Museum of Computing and the Radio Society of Great Britain, and is also open for corporate functions.

They say that the activities here by British and American cryptologists shortened the duration of the war by as many as four years. Three cheers for Bletchley Park and all who served there.