1955 ulster tt
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Lofty England
British engineer, chief executive of Jaguar Cars
Frank Raymond Wilton "Lofty" England (24 August 1911, Finchley, Middlesex – 30 May 1995, Austria) was an engineer and motor company manager from Britain. He rose to fame as the manager of the Jaguar Carssports car racing team in the 1950s, during which time Jaguar cars won the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans race on five occasions. After the company's withdrawal from racing England moved into the mainstream management of Jaguar Cars, later succeeding Sir William Lyons as its chairman and Chief Executive, before retiring in 1974.
Early life
Frank England was born in Finchley, Middlesex, and found an aptitude and interest in motor engineering during his schooling at Christ's College.[1] At the age of 14 the England family moved to Edgware. Here the young Frank was able to watch Bentley chassis, built in nearby Cricklewood, being tested along the long, straight A5 road, formerly part of the Roman Road of Watling Street.
England was apprenticed as an engineer to the Daimler Company in 1927[ Former Speed 25 Model Secretary, George Butlin, met F R W “Lofty” England shortly before he died in 1995 and the result of this meeting was published in the same year in Bulletin 427. It is reproduced here with further links – a fascinating reminder of the many exceptional engineers who spent time at the Alvis and went on to great things. Lofty’s Alvis days (24 August 1911 – 30 May 1995) ln February’s Bulletin the chairman asked if anyone knew the history at Alvis of “Lofty” England, who went on to become competition manager and chairman of Jaguar. The following month George Butlin met him F R W ”Lofty” England is living in retirement in Austria and has been discussing a biography of his motoring career. The following brief details of his involvement with Alvis suggests that the book, when published, will be of great interest to Alvis enthusiasts as well as to a wider public who will remember him best for his illustrious involvement Copyright ©fatunfo.pages.dev 2025•
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Lofty England; Tony Rudd
FRW (Lofty) England of Jaguar
“My most memorable character” used to be a feature in Reader’s Digest. My “most memorables” tended to be engineers or in motor racing. Some were both, like Tony Rudd of BRM, the archetypal articulate engineer. Winning world championships with BRM and becoming Colin Chapman’s trusted adviser were outstanding accomplishments. He managed to convince BRM to flatten out two of its successful V8s, put them on top of one another, gear the crankshafts together and make the H16. Articulate? Read his book, “It was fun!”, published by Haynes in 1993. Great man. Great host. Great family. Jackie Stewart’s tribute at his memorial service was a masterpiece.
FRW England was another “memorable”. I treasure a print of Terence Cuneo’s painting, Pit Stop Le Mans 1953, on which he wrote “Eric – a memento of our good relations. Lofty”. Jaguar was replete with memorable individuals in the 1960s. Sir William Lyons created a unique company culture of loyalty and respect, which included my most frequent point of contact, the press office, under