Page 81 - Adrenaline DEC

THE JOHN LENNON PHANTOM V
1965 ROLLS-ROYCE PHANTOM V
In their brief but world-changing career, The Beatles reinvented themselves many times. So it’s fitting that the Phantom V owned by John Lennon
was not always as it appears today in the Exhibition. In fact, when he took delivery of it on the 3 of June 1965, it was finished in restrained, respectable Valentine Black. But as he later admitted, Lennon had always wanted to be an eccentric millionaire. With his Phantom V, he realised that dream in full. Taking full advantage of the marque’s bespoke capabilities, Lennon had the car customised in true rock-star style, complete with television, telephone, refrigerator, record player – even a double bed in place of the rear seat.
In April 1967, Lennon asked coach-builders JP Fallon to repaint the car, in time for the worldwide release of the newly-minted Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band on the 1st of June. Frequently described as ‘psychedelic’, the design is no random swirl, but actually a carefully-constructed floral Romany scroll, as seen on traditional narrowboats and gypsy caravans, with a zodiac symbol on the roof. When Lennon moved to the USA in 1970, the car went with him, and was loaned out to other rock stars including The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and The Moody Blues. If ever a car could talk? In 1977, it was donated by billionaire Jim Pattison to the Royal British Columbia Museum in Canada.
The car has been generously loaned to the Exhibition by the Royal British Columbia Museum.
HER MAJESTY QUEEN ELIZABETH II’S PHANTOM VI
T
own a further nine. The connection strengthened further in 1950 when the then Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip took delivery of the first Phantom IV just after their marriage. Twenty-seven years later, to celebrate The Queen’s Silver Jubilee year, this Phantom VI was presented to Her Majesty, and served as her principal state car until 1992. It made a memorable reappearance in 2011, when it brought Kate Middleton and her father to Westminster Abbey for her marriage to Prince William.
The car is custom-built, with a number of features specially designed for its unique role. As part of the royal fleet, it’s finished in Royal Claret Livery and does not require a registration plate. When The Queen was aboard, the Spirit of Ecstasy was replaced by the royal mascot: a fitment over the windscreen held her personal silver coat-of-arms and flag. The raised roofline accommodates an
1977 ROLLS-ROYCE PHANTOM VI COACHWORK BY MULLINER PARK WARD
enormous expanse of toughened glass, enabling The Queen to see and be seen by the crowds lining her route.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has graciously assented to her Phantom VI State Limousine being present at ‘The Great Eight Phantoms’ – A Rolls- Royce Exhibition – for the British public to see.
he British Royal Family was an early adopter of the ‘finest cars in the world: Edward VIII bought his first Rolls-Royce in 1919 and went on to
81