Elswick Envoy

[Barry]

A lovely short film

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEFolj_ExEo

[Rob Dobie]

Thank you for finding this great film. What a lovely lady. Had me in tears for a while.

Chris, have you still got your Elswick?

[Rusty Chrome (Malcolm Parker)]

Excellent film, directed by the lady herself! Be nice to visit that Science Museum outpost one of these days.

[Garybond]

That's great they have a Bond A in there somewhere I think a visit would be good

[Big Al]

What Wroughton? Used to have great rallies up there. Negotiated free use of a lockable key held hangerside clubroom sweet with tea ern, our own boglets etc. Great perrie track but not allowed on the runway as it was emergency strip for Lynham, Brize and in an emergency Heathrow as it had the Hospital next to it. That is no longer so.
Was looked at as a National Venue but was vetoed as the facilities for campers were poor, no hook ups, not sure what else, but I am not a campervan fan so I would not know. Anyway that was more important than having an airfield to play on and access to the GWR workshops in Swindon where they were repairing main line locos at the time! Yeah, right, pillocks! A sign of things to come as it turned out.

Seems to have got more difficult to access Wroughton these days. Very interesting stuff in there.

Meanwhile there is an Elswick on eBay, jingly money cheap at the moment

[Chris Thomas]

Dear Rob

Yes I still have the Elswick and in need of a new owner.

It would be ideal for you, straight in with your wheel chair, lock into the floor and off you go.

Yes it needs some work doing to it. For a man of your many talents it would be a new challenge.

Back in the old driving seat with a blue badge pass, there would be no stopping you.

Chris Thomas

[milnes]

What a great little short story Barry, thanks for posting it.
Some on here may get bored of hearing this but the IC's really do have an important part to play in the British Micro & car industry.

[richard]

Agreed a lovely lady and a lovely little programme

[Stuart Cyphus]

 Ah! The Envoy Case. I'd almost forgot about this!  You viewers didn't have to deal with the film crew behind the scenes! At the risk of it sounding like sour grapes when in reality I have no thoughts of any kind on the matter, it would have been nice if they had given me and the ICR just a tiny little credit at the end, for it was me who supplied all the historical details and pictures, me who put them in touch with most of the persons you see in the film, and me who introduced them to Wroughton and acted as one of the go-betweens for her car to go there.

 Of course it doesn't make a good programe to tell the story in the correct time line. It was only AFTER Wroughton had accepted the car that they decided to go off at a tangent and make a programme about trying to get the car safe, so in reality, everything prior to the car arriving at Wroughton, is one long bluff and play acting. It was ALWAYS going to Wroughton, before filming ever started.

 Still, I helped get the car safe, but such are the things you see from standing behind the scenes. 

[Big Al]

Its called OBE, Other Bastards Efforts, and it is the way people who claim to be in charge get other people to do all their work, while the bod at the top takes the plaudits for success and dishes the dirt out to underlings on failures. Been there, done that. Now you have to pay for my information and skills, then I do not care if you want to claim the prizes. Doing it for free is a mugs game, but of course so many folk want to be on the telly, in the paper etc etc. Not worth it unless your selling, but the money equivalent is.

And there is ICR once again changing the fortunes of the IC from ignored unwanted wrecks, into mobile social history. Constructive help some other clubs could well take lessons from if they were not so proud.

[Rusty Chrome (Malcolm Parker)]

While I'd agree that from what he says about his input, it's a shame that Stuart and the ICR didn't get any credit, I'd argue that this film probably expected a very limited audience, but the quality of the storytelling and the fact that the film exists would have helped raise the profile of invalid carriages as an important historical artifact and an item of intrinsic value. People may be motivated to seek more information and find out about the ICR or even purchase their own IC because of this film.

The credits are an important part of film for those that have contributed, but less so for the vast majority of it's audience. Likewise, I don't think anyone on this forum has designed or produced their own unique microcar, but fortunately the RUM and it's bundle of knowledgeable friends and supporters exists to supplant what would otherwise be a dearth of information about someone elses product so that we can all enthuse about them.

[AndrewG]

I just think it was the design/styling that William Towns got exactly right, though I guess the Aston Martin DBS wasn't all bad.... 

Towns is up there with Giugiaro in the master of the folded paper school of design, I reckon.