Surprised no one's commented on this so far. It's a justifiably Big Deal in Britain!
Two great tastes in one candy bar:
ttps://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-36297590
Here she is, in delightful detail, as built in 1923:
https://scontent-dfw5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/332598017_246524477706059_3476341535205279571_n.jpg?_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=730e14&_nc_ohc=PkD-EJRKbAwAX9GKoge&_nc_ht=scontent-dfw5-1.xx&oh=00_AfC30CBifNGoP0thtUNVwSJD3ruXvsDhOHbLOXbzrFKz5w&oe=63FCE2E6
Just like a Spitfire or a Mosquito, function and form blended superbly!
Beautiful machine!
I have to add the Routemaster bus, the orignal RMS Mauretania and the Mini Cooper. Function and form, indeed!
Or an Adrian Squire
The Flying Scotsman is 100 years old and England's Poet Luareate has written a tribute. https://www.bbc.com/news/av/entertainment-arts-64760727 The myth and magic of steam.
Mike
54light15RMS Mauretania
Honestly I think the "Olympic" class of liners were even more impressive, too bad two of them came to a bad end.
I'd nominate the Lockheed Blackbird series where form and function blended smoothly. Kelly Johnson's designs usually looked as good as they flew.
You can't argue with the Mauretania holding the Blue Riband from 1907 to 1929 but I see your point. The three Cunarders were about speed, not luxury.
The Squire- I've seen them in books but have never seen one in the flesh and I've been to a fair amount of classic car shows in the U.K. Adrian Squire built them, but the car is a Squire. Me, I'd go for a chain gearbox Frazer Nash but that's just me.
Erik_Mag I'd nominate the Lockheed Blackbird series where form and function blended smoothly. Kelly Johnson's designs usually looked as good as they flew.
Aeronautical engineers have (had?) a saying, "If it looks good it'll fly good!" and Kelly Johnson's airplanes all looked good! Although for top looks I don't think he ever surpassed the P-38.
The P-38! My favourite WW2 aircraft after the Spitfire. The next time you see a 1949 Cadillac, think of the P-38. It was a major influence on its styling. Look close, you'll see it.
Really? I'll remember that!
Erik_MagI'd nominate the Lockheed Blackbird series where form and function blended smoothly. Kelly Johnson's designs usually looked as good as they flew.
There were only ever 10 Squires, even counting the later examples after Adrian Squire left the production company. Nine of them survive, but even so it is not surprising that most people haven't seen one. I only knew about them from an article in one of the classic-car magazines in the early 1970s that considered one of the van den Plas-bodied examples to be one of the most beautiful cars, line for line, ever built.
The Avro Arrow was a strictly Canadian aircraft. The plants that built them near Pearson airport were demolished about 15 years ago. There is a large front section of one in the aviation museum in Ottawa; you can see how the fuselage was torched just behind the cockpit. DeHavilland had a plant here too but it was taken over by Bombardier.
Speaking of Barnes Wallis, at the Brooklands museum in the U.K. there is a big exhibit about the dam buster bombs and a lot of the original equipment is there. I've been by his house in South London and there is a blue historic plaque on it. At Brooklands, they are restoring a Vickers Wellington bomber there.
54light15The Avro Arrow was a strictly Canadian aircraft.
Something appropriate in context is the fad in the United States for "British" styling, in no small part inspired by this locomotive class and the King class displayed here in 1927. Loree in particular somewhat overdid the simple styling, cab appearance, etc. during his tenure at a couple of you-know-who-they-are railroads.
What I like is the styling of the A4 pacifics like the Mallard. Compare them with the Bugatti "tank" racing car and you will see what I mean.
54light15 The P-38! My favourite WW2 aircraft after the Spitfire. The next time you see a 1949 Cadillac, think of the P-38. It was a major influence on its styling. Look close, you'll see it.
I just looked up some images of the '49 Caddy. I see what you mean!
A while back I worked with a guy who said "There's nothing uglier than old Cadillacs!" Not in this case! Wow!
54light15What I like is the styling of the A4 pacifics like the Mallard.
Compare them with the Bugatti "tank" racing car and you will see what I mean.
I'm tempted to buy one of these but I really can't afford it:
https://www.dm-toys.de/en/product-details/Fulgurex_1160-1.html
I like how they say it's diesel powered when they ran with 4 type 41 Royale engines. Strictly powered by gasoline.
I prefer the A4s without the side skirts, myself. And I see what you mean about the fadeaway styling. Hooper-bodied cars I've always found to be ostentatious, especially the Docker Daimlers.
Overmod- this one's for you:
https://www.prewarcar.com/451346-1936-squire-for-sale
Norton 750 Commando.
norton 750 commando - Bing images
Backshop Norton 750 Commando. norton 750 commando - Bing images
It must have been a good machine if the "King of Cool" owned one!
https://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/hollywood-motorhead-steve-mcqueen/
Coolest guy ever! What a loss, taken from us much too soon!
Funny, I just watched "The Magnificent Seven" last night. Yep, McQueen was cool and so was Charles Bronson. Who else was cool? Yul Brynner.
I once looked at a used Norton twin (I think it was a 650) in the early 1980s as a second bike, but ultamatly passed on it. I never did buy a second motorcycle.
54light15 Funny, I just watched "The Magnificent Seven" last night. Yep, McQueen was cool and so was Charles Bronson. Who else was cool? Yul Brynner.
After McQueen died Sir Richard Attenborough (who worked with Steve twice and loved the guy) was asked what Steve was like. Sir Richard said:
"Just watch him in 'The Great Escape,' he wasn't acting. THAT'S what he was like!"
We all know that a lot of The Great Escape was BS but damn, that was one of the best movies ever made! Remember how the train had Deutsche Bundesbahn logos on it? Nope, not correct but so what?
Who else was cool? Robert Mitchum- he made it look easy. And so did William Powell.
54light15We all know that a lot of The Great Escape was BS but damn, that was one of the best movies ever made! Remember how the train had Deutsche Bundesbahn logos on it? Nope, not correct but so what?
That it was, it's one of my favorites, in fact I'd have to say it's my favorite war movie. I've read the book several times (never gets old) and seen the movie even more times and certainly there's some serious departures from the book in the film but honestly I'd say both the book and the movie complement each other pretty well. This is one of the few cases where I can't say "The book was better than the movie" or "The movie was better than the book." The book's author Paul Brickhill and the film makers did their jobs well.
Next time I watch the movie I'll look for those Deutsche Bundesbahn markings. Obviously I missed them, but one thing that impressed me was in some scenes where the rolling stock is up close there are Deutsche Reichsbahn markings complete with the Reichsadler emblem. That impressed me!
Flintlock76 54light15 RMS Mauretania Honestly I think the "Olympic" class of liners were even more impressive, too bad two of them came to a bad end.
54light15 RMS Mauretania
But at least Brittanic gets the distinction of being the largest liner hull of her era to be largely intact on the seabed.
Same me, different spelling!
Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.