Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

What we as kids back in the 60s used to call the “old crocks race,” the London to Brighton Run has over the past few years morphed into a sort of London Motoring Week which kicked off on the Wednesday, October 29 with the opening of the Royal Automobile Club’s ‘Art of Motoring’ exhibition at the Iconic Images Gallery in Waterloo Place Piccadilly, and reached its zenith on the Sunday November 2 with the London to Brighton Veteran car run.

Taking center stage in the atrium of the RAC Club House, this 1902 Wolseley two cylinder 10hp Tonneau, only the 53rd car to be road registered in the city of Birmingham. Originally fitted with solid rubber tyres, the Wolseley now runs on pneumatic tyres, and has done since 1953. Before being purchased by the Oldman family in 2001 the car was owned by Jack Howes, an enthusiast who entered and completed 45 London to Brighton Veteran Car Runs, in fact this Wolseley has now made the run 55 times.

Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

For the past two years, us scruffy old media types have been allowed into the venerable RAC Club house located on Pall Mall, slap bang in the center of the St James Motoring Spectacle. So a chance to enter through the mahogany revolving doors and take a peek inside was not something I was going to miss.