MEET THE OWNER - DANNY HOPKINS AND HIS MORRIS MARINA

On the 27^th of April, the Morris Marina celebrated its 50th birthday, and one of many enthusiasts is Danny Hopkins, the editor of Practical Classics Magazine:

‘My first three cars were Marinas, my fourth an Ital – all bought for £150 or less in the 1980s. They were cheap, and I could fix them with my eyes closed. I did notice that the materials used to make them deteriorated from the Mk1 to Mk2 to the Ital, which was the worst of the bunch. That might have something to do with the way the range is viewed now.’

Today, Danny is the proud custodian of a 1.3 Super that is the second-oldest production Coupe know to the Owners’ Club – ‘it was built in the second week of production. This incredibly rare Morris is a restoration project starring in the latest copy of Practical Classics Magazine.

The Coupe has just been sent for painting at ACE Refinishing and Hydrographics Ltd in Alcester, following six months of bodywork in the Practical Classics Magazine workshop. Furthermore, Danny has exclusively revealed to Lancaster Insurance that ‘I have just bought a spares car which I will also restore’; this saloon is to star in the July edition of Practical Classics Magazine. Mr. Hopkins also wishes to pay tribute to the Marina experts Chris Weedon and Josh Ward - ‘stalwart fellows’ – and to the Club - ‘they make owning these cars a real pleasure’.

Such enthusiasm and dedication towards this rare car are in marked contrast to the “Leyland Jokes” endured by many owners since the 1970s. Long before Messrs Clarkson, May and Hammond – aka The Goodies minus the “trandem” – indulged in their piano-related shenanigans, The Two Ronnies regularly featured a BL “news item”.

And many of the attacks on the Marina seem to have been based on prejudice and hearsay. ‘It used old Morris running gear’ - at a time when the Ford Cortina Mk3’s engineering was not exactly cutting edge. ‘It was ugly’ – in fact, Roy Haynes designed the rather attractive bodywork. ‘It looked dated when new’ – at a time when the Arrow-Series Hillman Hunter clearly harked back to the mid-1960s.

Few would claim the Marina was perfect – Danny observes ‘it was not a “great car”’ – but its main problem was in its manufacturer, not its concept. The infamous Leyland safety film The Quality Connection - illustrates just some of the challenges facing the BL empire during the late 1970s.