News and Events

News

A3 wins a trophy

Each year the Brooklands Society organises the Brooklands Reunion meeting to remember the events which took place at the eponymous racing circuit. In 2011 it took place late in July. A3 was taken along for display by James Aldridge of Ecurie Bertelli and was parked in a prime position outside the Clubhouse, it was also driven up the Test Hill. The car was much admired, it is a rare and interesting vehicle with strong connections to the history of Brooklands. Pictures of it at the event appeared in the October issue of ?AM News?. A little while later it was learned that A3 had been awarded the Kenneth Evans trophy for its appearance at the Reunion. The trophy is awarded for what is judged to be the best British built car in the period 1920 to 1939 which is present at the Reunion. The Trust should rightly be proud that its prized car was given this award.

The trophy is an elegant silver cup with a lid, which was originally won by Kenneth Evans on the 6th May 1939 for finishing 4th in the J. C. C. International Trophy race; he was driving a supercharged Alfa Romeo. The cup was originally donated by the Vacuum Oil Co. Ltd. Kenneth Evans was a well known driver at the circuit, often at the wheel of various MGs.

The 2011 presentation was made at the Brooklands Society annual dinner and Prizegiving, held in the Brooklands Clubhouse on the 25th November, by David Abecassis who wrote the recently published biography of his father, George Abecassis. It was accepted for the Aston Martin Heritage Trust by the Trustee Richard Loveys, who was also at the Reunion meeting in July.

Poster and Notecards of A3

Last year the Trust commissioned Joanna Cawser (our resident artist) to produce a variety of drawings of A3. Joanna did a marvellous job and so the Trust decided to have a limited number of A2 posters printed and produced. This limited edition is now on sale at £100 per poster plus postage and packing. In addition we have printed and produced Notelets based on 5 different designs. These are available for sale in packs of 10 (including envelopes) for £5.00 per pack plus postage and packing. Each pack contains two cards of each design. See our Products page for more information. Please contact Anne Wright by email at secretary@amht.org.uk or by telephone +44 (0) 1865 400414 to purchase the above items. Any profits from the sales will go to the Trust and will contribute towards the continuing development of our unique heritage collection.

New Trustee

The Trust is delighted to announce that Nicholas Hewitt has been appointed a Trustee and will take on the role of Treasurer. Nicholas has been a member of the AMOC since 1992 and, over the years, has enjoyed the ownership of seven classic and one modern era Aston Martin cars.

Retiring Trustee

Mark Seligman has now stepped down as a Trustee of AMHT and to mark his long and dedicated service he was presented with a personalised glass bowl by chairman Roger Carey 5th December 2011.

Forthcoming

The Walter Hayes Memorial Lecture 2012

Tuesday January 24th 2012
RAC Club, Pall Mall, London

Our annual Walter Hayes Memorial Lecture will be held at the RAC Club, Pall Mall, London on Tuesday January 24th 2012, at 7pm for 7.30pm.

Our special guest this year, Tony Brooks, has kindly agreed to take part in an interactive discussion with the distinguished motoring journalist David Burgess-Wise. Their discussion will be followed by a question and answer session with the audience.

Tony has an impressive track record. In 1957 he was the first British driver in a British constructed car to win a Grand Prix since 1923, when he won the British Grand Prix at Aintree. He was driving a Vanwall VW5, shared with Stirling Moss. From thirty-eight Grand Prix starts during the five year period between 1956 and 1961, he achieved no less than 6 wins, two second places and three third places, clocking up a total of 75 points in the Drivers? Championship.

The Walter Hayes dinner will be, as usual, in the prestigious surroundings of the Mountbatten Room at the Royal Automobile Club. Tickets, which are already selling well, are priced at £90 each for Members (non-Members £95) and will include a two-course meal accompanied by a half bottle of wine. There will be a cash bar available from 7pm, prior to our being seated for dinner at 7.45pm. The discussion with Tony Brooks will follow dinner.

Please reserve your place with the Trust Secretary Anne Wright, at secretary@amht.org.uk or by phone +44 (0)1865 400414. You can pay by credit card, or with a cheque made payable to the Aston Martin Heritage Trust. You can also pay by bank transfer - please phone for bank account details.

Reports

Aston Martin Heritage Trust - Unaudited Financial Statements, Year Ended 31 December 2010

Report (PDF)

Walter Hayes Memorial Lecture 2011

A Report by Jon Radgick (Deputy Chairman of the Trust)

The annual lecture held at the Royal Automobile Club in London’s Pall Mall every year in memory of Walter Hayes, the AMHT’s founding Chairman, was an extra-special occasion this year as it was an audience with Sir Stirling Moss.

The glittering venue was a most suitable location and the 180 guests had an unexpected treat as they were greeted by the wonderful sight of Aston Martin DBR1/1 in the foyer. This was the car in which Moss drove one of his finest races at the Nurburgring in 1959, taking over after his co-driver Jack Fairman had dug the car out of a ditch after an “off” and in typical Moss fashion driving flat out to eventually win the race from Phil Hill’s Ferrari by just 40 seconds. This win then laid the foundation for Aston Martin’s victory in the World Sportscar Championship that year.

Dinner over, the guests settled down to hear a question and answer session between David Burgess-Wise and Sir Stirling and were regaled by many tales, a masterclass on driving a four-wheel drive racing car, a comparison between the management techniques of John Wyer and Alfred Neubauer and many other fascinating and often hilarious remarks. Accompanied as ever by Lady Susie, Sir Stirling gave generously of his time, signed numerous menus and even allowed AMHT to print two photographs from his personal album which he then signed and which were auctioned, raising £1850 for Trust funds.

All in all it was a memorable evening which sets a very high standard for next year’s dinner. Be there to see whether the challenge is met!