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Category: British Motor Museum

  1. New look British Motor Museum opens this Half Term!‏

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    The British Motor Museum re-opens to the public on Saturday 13 February following a £1.1m refurbishment. Formerly known as the Heritage Motor Centre, the new Museum will be visually more exciting with an immersive display of British motoring history, designed to appeal to both current fans as well as new audiences. Also opening on the 13 February is the new Collections Centre, allowing public access for the first time to an extra 250 cars from the reserve collections of the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust and the Jaguar Heritage Trust.

    The Museum will be officially opened by Managing Director, Julie Tew at 10am on the 13 February along with a live broadcast from Touch FM and visitors are encouraged to come along early to join in the celebrations.

    Julie Tew, Managing Director said “We are delighted to re-open the Museum to visitors for half term. We have a packed programme of family events and tours and visitors will be impressed with the changes we have made to the Museum.”

    Half term will kick off with “Build a British Car Week” from 13 – 21 February.  Everyday children of all ages can test their knowledge with the ‘Family Story’ trail and join one of the workshops in the LEGO® Education Innovation Studio where they can get creative building British cars with LEGO® bricks.

    There are a range of different workshops to choose from. How cool is your British car takes place on Saturday 13 & Sunday 14 February where children can build a car in the Studio and see where its placed on the cool wall.  Technic Workshops run from Monday 15 – Thursday 18 February where children can design, build and test their own vehicle using LEGO® technics and become an engineering apprentice for the day. Build a balloon powered car takes place on Friday 19 February where children can see how far their LEGO® brick sports car can travel. Build a rubber band powered car takes place on Saturday 20 February where children can use a rubber band to power their LEGO® brick car and attempt to beat the current British Motor Museum’s record. Finally The 25 Brick Challenge takes place on Sunday 21 February where children can attempt to build a motor car with 25 LEGO® bricks and four wheels. All workshops run from 10am – 3pm.

    Tours of both the Museum and the Collections Centre will be available daily and can be booked at no extra charge on arrival, and all half term family activities are also free of charge. Normal Museum entry fees apply: Adults £14, Children £9 (5-16 years) under 5’s free, Concessions £12 & Family £39 (2 adults & up to 3 children). Buy one day and get 12 months free if you Gift Aid your entrance. To find out more information please visit the website at www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk  or call 01926 641188.

  2. British Motor Museum makes three new senior staff appointments

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    The British Motor Museum (formerly known as the Heritage Motor Centre), has made three new senior staff appointments. John Bishop takes on the role of Group Visits Executive, Simon Carr joins as Clubs & Rallies Co-ordinator and Neil Colledge joins as the Drivezone Development Officer.

    John Bishop, Simon Carr and Neil Colledge, British Motor MuseumJohn Bishop, who was previously ‘Clubs, Groups & Rallies Senior Co-Ordinator’ took on the new role of ‘Group Visits Executive’ from 30 November. John is responsible for promoting the British Motor Museum and Collections Centre to Group Travel Organisers and Tour Operators as well as developing joint visits with other venues and increasing footfall. John joined the organisation 20 years ago and is well experienced in what the British Motor Museum can offer, as well as motoring history, social history and RAF Gaydon history. John plans to introduce a series of new guided tours in 2016, including ‘Mind Your Motoring Manners’ with Paula Cornwell acting as the Hon. Mrs Victor Bruce.

    Simon Carr is responsible for looking after clubs and rallies who wish to hold club meetings/AGM’s and run road rallies. His main responsibilities are to look after classic car clubs and promote the excellent facilities on offer at the British Motor Museum. Simon’s experience has previously been in customer services so he is well equipped for his new role. His future plans include running the usual events such as Club Expo and the Heritage Rally as well as new events such as the 2016 Shakespeare Rally which will celebrate 400 years of Shakespeare’s legacy over the August bank holiday weekend.

    Neil Colledge, a retired Police Officer, started at the British Motor Museum on 2 November. He is heading up the Museums ‘Drivezone’ which provides driver education and experiences for people of all ages, starting from 11 years! One of his aims is to try and reduce road casualties by providing driver education to 11 - 17 year olds before they start driving lessons. During Neil’s time as a traffic officer, he attended and dealt with many road traffic collisions where drivers suffered life changing or fatal injuries, and the hardest thing he did was to deliver "that message" that due to a collision, someone will not be coming home. The last 5 years of his police service was spent in the forces driving school, teaching both police officers and support staff to drive cars and ride motorcycles, from basic assessments to advanced level, including emergency response and pursuit techniques. Neil was also the trainer and assessor for the VIP police motorcycle escort team. Neil is passionate about road safety, and is a member of The Association of Independent Road Safety Officers, The Institute of Advanced Motorists and is an approved examiner for RoSPA. Neil’s future plans include developing a road safety academy at the British Motor Museum .

    The British Motor Museum re-opens to the public on Saturday 13 February following a refurbishment at a cost of £1.1m by the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust. The changes will result in a much more visually exciting and immersive display of cars, designed to appeal to both current fans as well as new audiences yet to experience all that the Museum has to offer. The Collections Centre also re-opens on the same date. Supported by Heritage Lottery Fund, Jaguar Land Rover and the Garfield Weston Foundation, as well as the two charitable Trusts involved, the £4m project stores around 250 vehicles from the reserve collections of the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust and the Jaguar Heritage Trust. To find out more information please visit the website at www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk

  3. Celebrate Father's Day at the Heritage Motor Centre!‏

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    The Heritage Motor Centre has everything all wrapped up for Father’s Day whether it’s a special day out or a unique gift for fathers and grandfathers that love British motoring. Not only does the Museum boast over 180 historic British cars to admire from Aston Martins to Minis and everything in between, but the nostalgic Banbury Run also takes place on Sunday 21 June. An added bonus is that entry into the Museum on that day is just £8 instead of the normal £12 entry fee.

    Visitors on the day will be able to see over 500 Veteran and Vintage motorcycles ride out, starting and finishing at the Museum. The event, now in its 67th year, is the largest gathering of pre-1931 motorcycles & 3-wheelers in the world and a spectacle not to be missed.

    If you are looking for a motoring gift then the Heritage Motor Centre has a range of exciting and unique products for every British marque of car available from their shop or online. The choice ranges from pewter models, books, DVDs, mugs and tin plaques to more personalised and bespoke gifts such as tax disk cuff links that can feature the registration number and production date of your father’s car or a Heritage Certificate for his classic car. Many more products are available to purchase from the Museum’s shop as the website has only a limited selection.

    If pictures are a more suitable gift, then choose from thousands of British Motor Industry Heritage Trust archive photos using our online picture library - Motorgraphs. Available as a framed print, canvas or collage, you will find a wide variety of attractive historical images featuring famous makes such as Austin Healey, Triumph, MG, Rover, Land Rover, Austin, Morris, Riley and Wolseley. There are also attractive advertising posters and colourful scenic pictures from the 1950s to the 1980s, just the thing for that difficult-to-buy-for father or grandfather!

    For more information about the Heritage Motor Centre please visit www.heritage-motor-centre.co.uk or call 01926 641188.

    For the online shop visit www.heritage-motor-centre.co.uk/store.

    For more information on Motorgraphs please visit www.motorgraphs.com

  4. 500 Vintage bikes ride out together for nostalgic Banbury Run!‏

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    Around 500 Veteran and Vintage motorcycles will ride out together when the Heritage Motor Centre hosts the nostalgic Vintage Motor Cycle Club Banbury Run on Saturday 21 June. Visitors will be able to see the motorcycles start and finish at the Museum. The event, now in its 67th year, is the largest gathering of pre-1931 motorcycles & 3-wheelers in the world.

    The Banbury Run is aimed at those who enjoy the thrill of riding with other Vintage, Veteran & Pioneer bikes. In addition to the Run, there will also be Club and Trade Stands, over 100 Autojumble pitches and special interest displays.

    Tom Caren, Show Manager for the Heritage Motor Centre stated “The Banbury Run is a great day out for those participating and those watching the bikes. Seeing hundreds of vintage motorcycles ride together is a spectacle not to be missed!”

    The Museum will be open from 10am – 5pm with the Banbury Run beginning at 10am. Riders will start at 5 per minute. Tickets for the Run cost £6 in advance or £8 on the day for adults, children and concessions and £25 for a family on the day.

    For more information about the Heritage Motor Centre please visit www.heritage-motor-centre.co.uk or call 01926 641188.

  5. Relive the past at nostalgic 'Classic & Vintage Commercial Show'‏

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    Visitors can re-live the past when the Heritage Motor Centre hosts the eighth ‘Classic and Vintage Commercial Show’ on Saturday 13 & Sunday 14 June.  The popular two day show features a diverse selection of classic and vintage vehicles built before 1990. Attracting an array of commercial vehicles such as the lightweight Morris J Type and Ford Transit van through to the mighty Scammell Heavy Haulage Tractors, the event is one of the largest classic commercial shows in Europe.

    On show will be some familiar marques including Dodge, Ford, Austin, Morris, AEC, Leyland, Foden, ERF, Volvo, Scania and DAF. The show also attracts a number of overseas visitors, including entries from Europe, which add to the diverse selection of vehicles to view. For enthusiasts restoring vehicles, there will also be a large indoor and outdoor trade area selling parts.

    In addition there will be an indoor model show within the Museum featuring over 160 tables of models on display. Whether they are kit or scratch built, the models add a different aspect to the show and highlight an array of different scaled models.

    The show is supported by Kelsey Media, who have their own trade stand selling a number of their publications including Classic and Vintage Commercial magazine, Classic Van and Pick up magazine and Vintage Roadscene.

    Tom Caren, Show Manager for the Heritage Motor Centre stated “This event is a real step back in time and a fascinating nostalgia trip, even if you have never been connected to the world of commercial vehicles. Around 4,000 visitors are expected to attend this nostalgic show which will showcase around 400 commercial vehicles for visitors to enjoy”.

    A 1 day advance ticket costs £12 for adults, £5 for children and £10 for concessions. A 2 day advance ticket costs £22 for adults, £10 for children and £17 for concessions. Tickets on the day are slightly more expensive; please see the website for full details.  Camping is available from 4pm on Friday 12 and Saturday 13 June. Last entry to the campsite is 9pm. Price per pitch, tent or caravan is £25 booked in advance or £35 on the day.

    The Classic & Vintage Commercial Show is just one of many exciting and unique motoring events held at the HMC in 2015. For more information about the Heritage Motor Centre please visit www.heritage-motor-centre.co.uk or call 01926 641188.