
Collaboration between The British Motor Museum and The Patrick Foundation starts with the arrival of a Singer Le Mans at Gaydon…
The British Motor Museum tells us:
(All words and photograph from The British Motor Museum).
The British Motor Museum is delighted to be welcoming a new car into its collection – a Singer Le Mans. Not only is this car an ideal fit for the Trust’s collection, it is also a fabulous gift to the Museum in its 30th Anniversary year – and marks the launch of an exciting new partnership with The Patrick Foundation.
This new working relationship between the two charitable trusts is meant to be. Both charities can trace their roots directly to the car-building heritage of the Midlands, and both are dedicated to preserving the legacy of the motor industry in Britain.
Stephen Laing, Head of Collections at the British Motor Museum, says: “We’re absolutely delighted that The Patrick Foundation has chosen to donate the Singer Le Mans to the Trust. Inspired by Singer’s success at the great race, the nippy Le Mans model, with its trim styling, looked the part. Embodying the spirit of the 1930s small British sports car, it’s a perfect fit for our collection. However, this Singer is more than just that. Its fantastic backstory, part of the Patrick family for so many years since first campaigned by J. A. M. Patrick, gives the car great provenance, just right for the Museum.”
Julian Pritchard, the grandson of the original owner, Joseph Patrick, and one of the trustees of The Patrick Foundation today, said, “To see my grandfather’s car, Chassis Number 1, which he so successfully competed in during the 1930s, being displayed within the fantastic surroundings of the British Motor Museum, is a real treat and something, as a family, we’re immensely proud to be able to facilitate. The trustees are delighted to begin this exciting collaboration with the British Motor Museum as the two organisations are so well-suited to each other. In its new home, the Singer Le Mans can be viewed and appreciated by countless visitors, keeping its spirit alive.”
The Singer Le Mans will be on display in the Museum from Monday 3 July 2023. In addition to the gift of the car itself, The Patrick Foundation has pledged significant funding for a number of upcoming projects, for which the Museum is extremely grateful. Further details will be announced in due course.
To find out more information about the Museum, please visit the website at https://www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk.
Further information about The Patrick Collection:
- The Patrick Collection began in 1960, when a decaying Austin Ten was spotted in a driveway in Hockley Heath, near Birmingham. This, however, was no ordinary car – it had been built by coachbuilders at Patrick Motors Ltd in the 1930s and, after it was purchased for the princely sum of £5, with the two men who had originally built it lovingly restoring it to its former glory.
This was just the start that Joseph Patrick (then Chairman of Patrick Motors Ltd) needed. He always loved his own private cars and could not face selling them. As a result, he had accumulated a range of cars, which would form the basis of the collection. Over the years, what became known as The Patrick Collection continued to grow and develop and, in the 1980s, after Joseph had died, his son Alexander opened a purpose-built museum in Kings Norton, Birmingham. At its peak, the Collection owned over 240 cars, reflecting the influence of the internal combustion engine on our lifestyle over the preceding years. The displays were regularly changed, with at least 70 vehicles on display at any one time.
Due to the demands of upkeep on such a large collection and general economic pressure, the original museum was sadly closed, and a decision has been taken to close the Foundation. In order to leave a lasting legacy, the trustees have identified the British Motor Museum as the perfect new partner.
Further information about The British Motor Museum:
- The British Motor Museum houses the collections of the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust – over 400 cars spanning the classic, vintage and veteran eras and a fabulous archive of film, photographs, personal papers and business documents.
- The British Motor Industry Heritage Trust (the Trust) is an independent educational charity formed in 1983. The Registered Charity Number is 286575. Its mission is to collect, conserve, research and display for the benefit of the nation, motor vehicles, archives and ancillary material relating to the motor industry in Great Britain and to provide a world-class motor museum and major visitor attraction providing a broad based academic and educational facility coupled to an entertaining and attractive display.
- The Museum has held its visitor prices for 2023 for even greater value! Museum entry costs just £40 for a family in advance or £44 on the day, £14.50 for adults in advance or £16 on the day, £12.50 for concessions in advance or £14 on the day, £9 for children (5-16 years) in advance or £10 on the day and under 5s go FREE. There is also the option to Gift Aid or donate your entry fee at the time of booking and upgrade your ticket to an Annual Pass in return, at no extra cost.
- In December 2014 the Trust gained the coveted designated status from Arts Council England which confirms that its collections are of national significance. The Designation Scheme is a mark of distinction, identifying and celebrating pre-eminent collections of national and international importance in non-national institutions.
- British Motor Museum is a National Portfolio Organisation supported by Arts Council England providing funding for a 4-year programme of exhibitions, engagement and learning activity from 2018 to 2022. Arts Council England is the national development body for arts and culture across England, working to enrich people’s lives. It supports a range of activities across the arts, museums and libraries. Between 2018 and 2022, it will invest £1.45 billion of public money from government and an estimated £860 million from the National Lottery to help create these experiences www.artscouncil.org.uk
- The British Motor Museum delivers a range of educational packages which support the National Curriculum – science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects at KS1 to KS4. A wide range of family and lifelong learning activities also take place in the Museum during school holidays.
- Each year the Museum hosts a number of highly successful and varied motoring Shows and Rallies as well as family events, lectures and workshops. For full details please visit the website www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk
- The address is British Motor Museum or British Motor Industry Heritage Trust, Banbury Road, Gaydon, Warwickshire CV35 0BJ.
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