All of the pictures on this page were contributed by Jeremy Cookson,
I am grateful to him for the opportunity of reproducing them here.
|
|
|
Click on any image to get the bigger picture |
|
|
1st CENTRAL MILTON KEYNES DRAGSTER & CUSTOM SHOW Organised by respected drag racer and team owner Dave Prior and Santa Pod Raceway, the 1st Central Milton Keynes Dragster & Custom Show took place in 1981 inside the Middleton Hall section of the main shopping complex. The week-long show held in the cold and frosty climate of late February attracted visitors from all over the country to view some of the sport's leading quarter mile machinery, vans, bikes and other assorted motorsport-related vehicles placed on display in the vast secured partitioned off hall. Star attractions on the raised silver foiled cover central platform was Santa Pod's latest American import from 7 times NHRA World Funny Car Champion; Don ‘The Snake’ Prudomme’s 5 second Army-sponsored Plymouth Arrow which later went on to become Bill Sherratt’s Cannonball. Next to the Funny Car was a 1980 Warsteiner F1 car piloted the previous season by German driver Jochen Mass and brought to the show by the locally based Arrows team. There were no less than 24 drag cars from a wide range of classes on display including Sylvia Hauser’s Dodge Challenger, a Fuel Altered from Nobby Hills Racing which in the hands of Owen Haywood ran an off the trailer 6.9 some months earlier at a damp Fireworks meet at Santa Pod, the ex-Gladiator nitro Chevy Vega now repainted as Rain City Warrior for Bill Sherratt, and the Hazelton’s latest import from the US; Clive Skilton’s Top Fuel dragster for son Brian to race in the Pro Comp class. Santa Pod even created a mock start line with the Alleygator and Maiden Warrior Pro Fuel Dragsters. With any show like this the publicity angle was sparked up with news spots on local BBC and ITV news channels, local radio and press by firing up Andrew Hurdle’s British Land Speed contender Scorpion Jet Dragster in a nearby car park. John Dodd also had his Rolls Royce Merlin powered ‘The Beast’ on display which was often classed by visitors to the hall as his ‘daily driven shopping trolley’! The show also attracted some well-known TV and motorsports personalities including Rod Hull and Emu and former F1 legend Stirling Moss who not only looked round all of the exhibits but also tried out the Maiden Warrior cockpit for size but declined the invitation to have a drive! The rest of the show was made possible with displays from the nearby Milton Keynes Speedway Team, Maitland Racing, Ari Vatanen’s Rothman’s Ford Escort Rally Car, slot car model drag strip, vans from the National Street Van Association, and a few custom cars and hot rods. Besides the custom bikes and choppers, Rod Pallant’s injected Kawasaki LA Hooker headed up the drag bike display along with Barry Townsend’s monster V8 Buick drag bike, Tony Bott’s Puma Westlake, the Hillman Imp engined Impala of John Battley, and Chris Wilson’s 3.5 Rover powered Comp Bike. Commentating legend John Price also made his show debut as the man on the DJ decks. In a recent interview he stated that he knew nothing about drag racing or the custom car scene beforehand but by a week later he knew a lot more thanks to Dave Prior’s son Stuart and other drag racing dignitaries. All in all it was an interesting show with plenty for people to see and do. Shame it was never repeated!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1980 AND 1981 WORLD OF WHEELS, NATIONAL EXHIBITION CENTRE Although I didn’t get to attend the last World of Wheels Show held at Birmingham’s NEC in 1982, these photos were taken at the highly acclaimed 1980 and 1981 shows featuring drag racing displays from all three UK drag racing promotions! Long before the Autosport Show came along, Hall 4 on a cold and damp January’s day had been booked for the first ever World of Wheels featuring over a 170 top line show winning vehicles to grace the hallowed floors of the National Exhibition Centre. |
|
|
|
Complementing the displays as part of the feature acts on stage was American rock and roll star Freddie Cannon backed by the Rocking Shades from ATV’s ‘Oh Boy’ series. Adding glamour to the proceedings was Playboy's Playmate of the Month Sylvie Grant who, on this occasion, was joined by former Dallas Cowboys AFL Cheerleader and billed as a ‘real live Texas Cowgirl’ Miss Lisa Whittrock. |
|
|
|
With the nearby Long Marston strip in the process of being resurfaced, a group of locally based racers from NDRC Midlands provided the display which included Ray Hoare’s Turbo Saxon, the Triumph Dolomite engined Imagination dragster of Rick Fielding, the Austin Ruby bodied Drag Addict, the Clifton Bros Hot Tomato C-Cab, and the guys from Team Apollo who come Sunday had won them the Best Appearing Comp Car Trophy and some money for their efforts which they spent later in the bar! From my photos it looks like the Houndog team were in attendance but with which Funny Car I’m not sure. |
|
|
|
|
Following a quick change in the organising team backed by Street Machine magazine and held under the organising banners of the British Division of the International Show Car Association and International Championship Auto Shows, the star exhibit at the 1981 show, believe it or not, was the UK debut of a genuine and unmolested ‘General Lee’ ’69 Dodge Charger from the hit TV series ‘The Dukes of Hazard’. |
|
|
|
Representing the world of drag racing and its many forms of exhibition cars through sponsors Kelly Tyres was Steve Murty’s Kelly Supercharger Tyres-sponsored Vauxhall VX4/90 wheelie car; a regular fixture at Pennine Promotions New York Dragway. |
|
|
|
With over 200 or more cars, bikes, trucks and race cars on display, besides the usual trophies and a slice of the £10,000 prize purse, the top winners for Best In Show and Best Overall Bike were whisked off at the end of the year to represent the UK at the ISCA Grand Finale in Las Vegas. Also amongst the glittering display of custom cars, bikes, trikes and trucks was the injected Chevy powered ‘two tone’ painted T-Bucket Comp Altered Sunset belonging to Reg Clarke, but quoted in the show guide as Pete Morris being the Team Gaffer! Dressed in what you would suspect as Martini Racing colours on a revolving plinth was James Whiting's Lotus Super Seven. James will be remembered for his championship winning Sevens in the Modified category of British drag racing but the example he had on display here was an all-out show winning full race spec twin cam Super Seven with most of the mechanical parts either chromed or polished.
|
|
|
|
|
First entry in the show guide was this ASCAR inspired 307ci 1970 Camaro painted in a Pro Street style and entered by drag racer Martin Curbishley. |
|
|
|
This stunning ’23 style track T was the creation of custom bike builder Chris Boyle. Complete with a 1500cc Cortina engine, 2000E gearbox and Jaguar E-Type rear end, this flamed American T inspiration was the talk of the show which Chris later named as English Graffiti. |
|
|
|
The 1982 show, again headed up by Rodger Attaway and Graham Kelsey from the popular Belle Vue Rod & Custom Shows, took place the first weekend in March. With even more outrageous vehicles on display the show was again backed by Street Machine magazine. Here are a few archive shots from the first two shows. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1981 INTERNATIONAL CUSTOM SHOW, BINGLEY HALL, BIRMINGHAM Over the years the famous Edwardian exhibition buildings known to the people of Birmingham as Bingley Hall has staged quite a few shows in its time. The ones that I can remember visiting with my parents were the Ideal Homes & Boys' Own Shows and, of course, the Midland Motor Shows; a popular venue next to a thriving night life in the city’s Broad Street area! Since the mid-seventies Birmingham had its own brand of Custom Car shows starting in 1975 with the Birmingham Speed & Custom Show. Six years later the 1981 International Custom Show entered the scene organised by Midlands show promoter Ron Clark. Sponsored by the Birmingham Evening Mail and hosted by the Mid England Roadsters, this nine day show attracted vehicles from all over Europe, Scandinavia and as far away as the United States! Making the long journeys from Sweden and Norway was Erik Hanson’s ’32 Model B Roadster and the Mako Shark II ’69 Corvette of Einar Valsjo. There were other entries from Denmark (’55 Ford Customline and ’56 Cadillac Sedan De Ville), a couple of vans from Belgium, and five entries from France representing Auto Loisers Magazine including a 1979 Austin Mini depicting murals of London! Grabbing a lot of attention was Phil Bowen’s 3.5 Rover powered Novel T C Cab. I’m sure this was a feature car in Hot Rod & Custom UK magazine. Top of the show exhibits in the drag racing world was Slamin’ Sammy Miller’s Rocket dragster Oxygen. Just weeks prior to the show Sammy clocked an amazing speed of 320.5 mph at Santa Pod’s World Finals in a little under 4.3 seconds for the quarter mile. Sammy’s other car; a rocket-propelled Mustang-bodied Funny Car Vanishing Point, also took centre stage alongside Santa Pod’s 230 mph Jet Dragster Hellbender. Around the halls further drag racing content was provided by the Torque ‘ot’ North Ford Pop of Roger Watson and Keith Pearson’s Jaguar-powered altered, both members of the Pennine Drag Racing Club, Russ Carpenter’s Glacier Grenade dragster and the popular Apollo Model T of Clive Dawe and Steve Bingham. Representing the Dutch drag racing club Explosion on this occasion was a Kawasaki Pro Stocker belonging to Jan Immink. During selected days of the show you had your chance of meeting England’s Test Cricketer Bob Willis, watch heats for the Miss Custom Show competition, take part in a wild west shootout, a rock ‘n’ roll contest or spend time whizzing round a specially prepared circuit with radio controlled cars provided by Birmingham’s original model guru; Bob’s Models which sadly is no more having closed its doors for the final time in 2013. All in all, for an adult entrance fee of just £2.00 the show had everything from star quality show cars, race cars, custom bikes, and just about everything else imaginable on both four and two wheels. There were a few more custom shows organised by different promoters. Sadly the hall was damaged by fire at the Midland Caravan, Camping & Leisure Exhibition in January 1984 and was later demolished. The International Convention Centre and Symphony Hall now stand in its place. Here are some photos from the show . . . |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All captions and photographs on this page by Jeremy Cookson |
|
|
All material on this site is copyright |
|
|
Contact Jeremy Cookson |
|
|
 |
Wait for it! |
|
|
Navigate through the |
|
Jeremy Cookson together with his parents |
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
