Science Museum to host 2015 AGM

So for those who will appreciate an antidote to the political rhetoric that will flood the airwaves on the same day, we have the perfect solution: a private tour of the Science Museum in London.

As indicated in the Guild-wide email survey in November, the plan is to host the meeting at the South Kensington Science Museum. It will take place in the late afternoon to allow time for as many people as possible to work during the day rather than commit to a full day out of the office.

The feedback from the survey was overwhelmingly in favour of the proposed location and timing. Three quarters of those who replied said they would plan to attend the AGM.

The event will start with members assembling in the Director’s Suite at the Science Museum in time for the AGM to start at 4.30pm. It will take about 60 minutes and be followed by a presentation from Citroën which will sponsor the event. Citroën sales and operations director Bekir Hassan will speak at the event.

When the AGM is over there will be a light buffet reception and guided group tours of the museum after it closes to the public. A highly relevant new exhibit that members will be able to see is the recently unveiled Information Technology Gallery from which the Queen sent her very first Tweet!

Following the tours the formal part of the event will be over. Members can choose whether to leave for home or perhaps arrange an evening meal with colleagues in one of the many local restaurants.

Full details will appear in the March/April edition of Update and formal invitation letters will be sent by the General Secretary during March. Please put the date in your 2015 diary now…THURSDAY 07 MAY 2015.

Updated 29 April 2015

Guild Dinner tickets now on sale

Members should already have received a personal email outlining the options for purchasing tickets which cost £90 for the three-course dinner, welcome drinks, wine with the meal and port and brandy with the coffee and mince pies.

As this is the Guild’s 70th anniversary this will be a special event with a few extras at the dinner so as many members as possible are encouraged to attend. Among those who have already accepted is new Honorary Member, HRH Prince Michael of Kent.

Your invitation to The Guild Dinner

Ticket prices have been held at £90 per head, despite the cost of the dinner and drinks having increased this year. Formal invitations to Members should look out formal invitations from general secretary by email next week, which will outline the options for purchasing tickets.

Guild Awards worth £23,000+

For 2014, there are two new awards for bus/truck and CV writers, to reflect and encourage these important sectors. The TMD Friction Ltd Textar Mintex Don Light Commercial Vehicle Writer Award has a £500 prize fund, and the Cummins Bus and Truck Writer of the Year Award offers £750.

The Cummins Award is, in common with several Guild Awards, open to members and non-members alike. The Guild has done this to encourage and advance motoring journalism in key categories; most awards, however, remain restricted to the Guild’s 500-plus membership only.

Two highly popular awards have been refocused for 2014. The AA Award moves from honouring environmental journalism to recognising the best in campaigning journalism, a category judges expect to be hotly fought.

The Newspress New Media Award becomes the Newspress Best Use of Social Media Award for 2014. Newspress and The Guild is keen to reward the best, most creative use of social media tools and believe high standards will be set in this new category.

Nominations are also being sought for The GoMW Special Commendation Award sponsored by KIA.

“We have once again evolved our industry ‘Oscars’ to reflect how today’s motoring writers operate, ensuring there are categories and opportunities for recognition open to everyone,” Guild chairman Guy Loveridge says.

“There are more than 20 Awards and more than £23,000 in prize money – I urge all Guild members and motoring writers to spend the next few weeks gathering their best work and preparing what could be one of the most profitable emails they send all year.”

Material published between 1 October 2013 and 30 September 2014 is eligible; the strict closing date is 23:59h, Tuesday September 30 2014. Awards will be presented at The Guild Annual Dinner and Awards event, to be held on Thursday 4 December 2014 at the RAC Pall Mall.

Entry forms can be downloaded from this website. Alternatively, you can email the Guild’s honorary secretary, Chris Adamson, at honsec@gomw.co.uk.

Sun shines on Guild P&O Euro Classic

The wide range of cars taking part made the line-up particularly interesting. For example, the oldest car on the trip was Paul and Josy Buckett’s delightful 1930 Rolls-Royce Phantom II, the second oldest being Andrew and Katherine Morland’s beautiful 1950 MG YT Tourer.

Moving upwards through the decades towards ‘modern classics’, there were sports cars, elegant Bentley and Rolls-Royce models, and ‘everyday’ models of their respective eras – including a Ford Granada Mark I and an Austin A35.

There were also three MGs – all owned by John Griffiths, who deservedly received an award at the Gala Dinner for his kindness in loaning two of them so that others could participate: ‘Team MG’ comprised the ‘B’ Roadster driven by Reg and Jo Burnard, the MGB GT V8 Sebring piloted by John and Peggy Griffiths, and the TF 160VVC in the care of Bob and Constance Kocher, who flew from their native America to take part.

This year’s Classic began at the Battle of Britain Museum on the historic Hawkinge Aerodrome, which was followed by a short drive to Dover to board the P&O vessel Spirit of France. Lunch was enjoyed on board as the French coast beckoned in the sunshine.

After a 55-mile run south-westwards along the Channel coast, the imposing Grand Hotel at Le Touquet (the Classic’s base) was reached. The evening was spent at the nearby Casino Barrière, where participants enjoyed a Champagne reception, followed by a superb meal.

Both this, and lunch aboard the ferry were kindly sponsored by Chris Laming and P&O Ferries.

Over the next two days, places of interest on the diligently planned driving routes included the Agincourt battle site, the charming walled town of Montreuil sur Mer, the hamlet of Crécy, and St Valery sur Somme – on the Somme estuary, with the air of a seaside resort.

On returning to the Grand Hotel on the Saturday, all enjoyed the wonderful Gala Dinner, kindly sponsored by Paul Buckett and Volkswagen UK.

For a full report, see the July/August edition of Update, The Guild newsletter.

John Surtees honoured by Guild

The Guild recognised the unique achievement of winning titles on two and four wheels by awarding John our Driver of the Year Trophy, which was presented to him at the 1964 Annual Dinner.

He kept the trophy until, with The Guild’s full blessing, he re-dedicated it in memory of his son Henry, who had been tragically killed racing at Brands Hatch in 2009. The trophy is now awarded annually by the BRDC to the most promising young driver.

On 4 June this year, a number of Guild members, as well enthusiasts and fans gathered at the Celtic Manor resort, Newport in South Wales, to pay tribute to John on the 50th anniversary of his Formula One Championship.

On the Wednesday evening there was a dinner for 26 people, including John, Jack Sears, Mike Wilds and a number of important sponsors of the event. From Thursday midday a buffet lunch was provided as those attending gazed at cars and bikes from John’s illustrious career.

In the afternoon, rides could be bought in exotica ranging from Guild president Nick Mason’s 250 GTO, through an XK120, first production E-type drop head, 330 GTC Ferrari and an exacting D-type replica.

Those who took rides reported themselves ‘well satisfied’, and those left to watch also had the chance to drive an F1 simulator or race Carrera evolution slot-cars, have their picture taken with John, or buy signed items to benefit his Henry Surtees Memorial Foundation.

The evening featured a Gala Champagne reception, thanks to Shell, and then a banquet supper, whose interval entertainment was Guild member Simon Taylor interviewing John from the stage. This part of the event ran 100 per cent over its allotted time, but many people said they could have carried on listening for hours.

For the full story, see the July/August of Update, The Guild newsletter.

Guild supports John Surtees Event

The event, Honouring John Surtees, is to be held on behalf of the Henry Surtees Foundation and is supported by The Guild of Motoring Writers. The programme will include an afternoon exhibition and an evening Celebration Dinner – all at the world-famous Celtic Manor Resort Hotel in Newport, Gwent.

Unique in the world of motor sport, John Surtees is a true great. He not only dominated motorcycle racing in the late 1950s – winning seven Grand Prix World Championships – but also made a seamless transition to single seaters, winning the 1964 Formula 1 Championship for Ferrari. He thus became the only man ever to win World Championships on both two and four wheels, a record that he still holds and is unlikely ever to be equalled.

Event programme

After a buffet lunch, those attending will see some of the cars and bikes that defined John Surtees’ competition career, including the legendary blue and white NART liveried F1 Ferrari 158 in which Surtees contested the final two races of the 1964 Grand Prix World Championship.

John will be available during the afternoon for signing sessions and photo opportunities, raising money for his charity, the Henry Surtees Foundation. Guests will also have the opportunity to bid for rides in a selection of exotic sports cars, also in aid of the Henry Surtees Foundation.

The evening programme begins with a Champagne Reception before the three-course Celebration Dinner. John Surtees will then be interviewed about his illustrious career, with a chance for guests to put forward their own questions in a Q&A. The evening will be rounded off by two-time World Superbike Champion James Toseland and his rock band Toseland.

John Surtees said: ‘It’s now 50 years since I won the Formula One World Championship for Ferrari so it is gratifying that this achievement, which made me the only individual ever to win World Championships on both two wheels and four, is attracting so much attention in this anniversary year, particularly as it helps to highlight the work we are doing with the Henry Surtees Foundation.

“I was delighted therefore, when I was approached by Guy Loveridge and Chris Mann of the Guild of Motoring Writers with the proposal that we put on an event to celebrate my motorsport career, especially as their plan was to use it to raise funds for the Henry Surtees Foundation, which was set up to provide assistance, equipment, facilities and training via motorsport-related programmes, to young people who have suffered brain injuries, helping to get them back into the community and lead fulfilling lives.

“I am greatly looking forward to the John Surtees Event and hope that you will give it, and the Henry Surtees Foundation, your support.” he said.

Event tickets are available from £150. For more information about the event, tickets or accommodation, visit : www.JohnSurteesEvent.co.uk email Jake O’Neill:  or call Jake direct on 01296 642822.

Beaulieu visit marks Guild’s 70th

To mark the event, The Guild a chose a very special venue to stage the Guild’s 69th AGM – the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu. And, for the first time, members attending were allowed to bring partners – not for the Guild business, but for tours of the Montagu stately home as well as the wonderful motor museum and a delightful lunch, kindly supported by Toyota GB.

Star guests included Murray Walker and Richard Noble. And Toyota/Lexus had also lined up a fantastic range of cars for members to drive after the day’s formal business, including some ‘vintage’ models.

After lunch, Guild guest Richard Noble, project director of BloodhoundSCC and former World Land Speed Record holder, gave a highly entertaining talk, explaining how the supersonic project had developed and the ups and downs experienced along the way.

Members and their partners were given an amusing and insightful tour of the museum’s remarkable collection by Beaulieu’s Andy Wise, including a behind-the-scenes look at the workshops.

After the tour, Murray Walker in the company of honorary member The Lord Montagu, unveiled a new Guild display. The exhibit includes Guild history and other information as well as a number of items presented to The Guild over the years, mainly from drivers voted Guild driver of the year.

Cummins to sponsor Guild CV award

Entry will be open to all commercial vehicle and, for the first time, bus writers, including those who are not Guild members. Cummins sponsorship includes an increased cash prize of £750 for the winning entry. The winner will also be offered complimentary membership of the Guild for one year.

In common with other Guild awards, entrants will be asked to submit three pieces of published work for consideration by the judges. The theme for 2014 will be, ‘features which promote the more efficient use of buses and trucks (over 7.5 tonnes GVW)’. All submissions must be made electronically and entry forms will be available this summer when the 2014 Guild of Motoring Writers Awards entry forms are released. Entry will close on 30 September 2014.

The award was launched at the Motor Industry Public Affairs Association (MIPAA) CV Show Media Reception on Monday 28th April. The reception took place on the eve of the CV Show 2014 at the NEC, supported by the Road Haulage Association. Visiting media attended the reception, joining MIPAA members and representatives from the RHA before the Show opened to visitors on Tuesday 29th April.

For more information or to register your interest for the award please contact Guild General Secretary Pat Lodge, telephone: 01202 422424, email generalsec@gomw.co.uk

Guild 2014 AGM heads for Beaulieu

Home for the day will be the National Motor Museum in the heart of the New Forest in Hampshire where, in addition to the formal business of the annual meeting, there will be the unveiling of an exhibition dedicated to 70 years of the Guild, a chance to see behind-the-scenes at the world-famous museum and the opportunity to drive some of the latest cars from Toyota and Lexus.

With its own long and rich automotive history, it is appropriate that the venue should be the pioneering National Motor Museum.

During the AGM afternoon, members and their guests will be able to take a special guided tour of the museum with access to areas such as the workshops which are normally closed to the public.

Sponsors for the AGM are Toyota/Lexus, and will provide refreshments and lunch during the day. In the afternoon members will have the opportunity to test some of the latest models from the two brands on roads in the picturesque New Forest.

After the Annual Meeting, an exhibition of Guild memorabilia, to celebrate 70 years of the Guild’s history, will be unveiled by Guild member Murray Walker inside the National Motor Museum.

The exhibition, located alongside a new display celebrating Britain’s Land Speed Record breakers, will include many items taken from the Guild’s current displays at the RAC, Pall Mall and Coventry Transport Museum. The exhibit will run until the autumn.

For the first time, spouses and partners are being invited to the AGM day. While members are in the annual meeting their guests will be given a guided tour of Palace House, the ancestral home of Lord Montagu.

A building on the site dates back to before the 17th Century, but the house, as seen today, largely results from rebuilding work that was completed in 1874 and retains many period features.

There will also be an opportunity to see the ruins of Beaulieu Abbey, which dates back to the 13th Century.

Personal invitations to attend the AGM, along with nomination forms for new committee members and any resolutions, were sent out in the week commencing 10 March. The closing date for attendance, nominations for the committee and any resolutions to be discussed is Friday 10 April.