MG Car Club

Did You Know?

• In 1966, the club had 5,000 home members and around 4,000 overseas members, totalling over 9,000 souls.
• The club's headquarters, Kimber House, was purchased in 1990 thanks to donations including a major contribution from Douglas Mickel OBE.

Founding

The first club meeting occurred on 12 October 1930 at the Roebuck Hotel near Stevenage, attended by over thirty MG cars and their owners. F.L.M. Harris, then editor of The Light Car, published a letter suggesting the formation of an MG Car Club, a proposal from Roy Marsh of Highbury, London. Harris became General Secretary of the club and editor of The Sports Car, which ceased publication at the outbreak of World War II.

History

The club's first sporting event was the Chilterns Trial in 1930. In January 1931, Cecil Kimber spoke at the first club dinner and pledged 50 guineas to club funds. The 1932 'First Show-Time Dinner-Dance at the Café Royal' included guests Sir William Morris, Earl Howe, Sir Henry Birkin, G.E.T. Eyston, and Cecil Kimber. Regional Centres formed as membership grew: a Northern Centre by March 1933 and a Scottish Centre shortly after. By April 1933, membership exceeded 500, and a Trials team and a Relay Race team had been formed; the latter finished second in the BRDC 500 Miles Race at Brooklands in September 1933. The bi-monthly M.G. Magazine debuted in May 1933, edited by Alan C. Hess. In October 1942, F.L.M. Harris resigned as honorary secretary due to RAF commitments. The club was taken in-house by the MG Car Co. at Abingdon in 1945. Petrol rationing limited motorsport. August 1951 saw the first Silverstone 'all-Centre' meeting, which continues today. Overseas Centres formed, and the magazine Safety Fast, compiled by F. Wilson McComb, was circulated to all members. From 1960 to 1967, the South East Centre organised competitive events at the Firle Hill Climb in Sussex.