Thanks For The MG, Mammy!

Neil Thompson from Ireland received a very special 50th birthday present from his mum, one which reignited a passion that began as a child andhas since led to classic thrills and adventure at Spa and Le Mans.

My interest in all things mechanical started as a young child fascinated watching my late father work on small displacement engines from vehicles such as the Fiat 500 and the Ford Anglia. I can remember my mother not being very impressed with me ‘helping,’ particularly as my dirty hands sometimes transferred oil to the soft furnishings of which she was so proud! Having spent school summers working at a local garage helping the mechanics, pumping petrol and topping up fluid levels on customer cars, I was hooked on motors for life.

For my 50th birthday my mother decided to buy me an MGB, obviously having made peace with the dirty hands of my childhood. Having completed an internet search and found no suitable cars in Ireland, the mammy and I headed to see Nigel Guild of Former Glory in London. There were many beautiful models to consider, and before long a deal was done on a Damask Red 1974 MGB GT. The mammy, then 81 years young, enjoyed the trip in the MG back to Holyhead, and on the boat home I entertained her with plans for the new wee sports car. The MG adventure had begun.

The car was bought in January 2011, and the first major outing was to the inaugural Spa Classic in May, accompanied by my youngest son Shane, then 11 years old. Unfortunately, our adventure started with a breakdown on the way to the ferry from Rosslare to Pembroke when the engine started to stutter, then eventually stopped. With no symptoms immediately obvious, it was time to call the AA. As we were rushing for the boat, the AA man suggested taking the MG on the back of his truck to the boat and having one of his UK colleagues meet us in Pembroke. This worked smoothly, with the AA taking us to a local garage on our arrival in Pembroke. After much scratching of many heads, the garage fitted a new coil, all seemed well again and we were on our way to Dover.