We went to the Welwyn Garden City Festival at the weekend, it turned out to be a much smaller event than we had anticipated but we had a fairly enjoyable time there, nonetheless.

Our first port of call was a brief stop at Topps Tiles which was the workshop of Sir Henry (Tim) Birkin, where during the 1920’s and 30’s he produced his famous Le Mans Blower Bentley motorcars to see the Bentley Drivers Club blue plaque and take a photograph.

I did ask the two members of staff as to the whereabouts of the blue plaque which was presented to Topps Tiles in 2019 by the Bentley Drivers Club but unfortunately neither of them knew where it might be, I was hoping it had not been thrown into a dusty cupboard and forgotten about. Where could the plaque have disappeared to I asked myself.

It’s not hard to imagine the workshop at full tilt when you compare my recent photo with a library photo on the Welwyn Garden City website.

For comparison, the library photo.

As usual, Angella and I forgot to take any photos of ourselves, except those of myself in Topps Tiles and one of Angella in our hotel room.

And finally, as they used to say at the end of the television news when they would come up with a happy story of a small cat who had been rescued from a tree, I’m afraid I do not have a happy ending as to the whereabouts of the missing plaque, but here is an image should anyone wish to take up the challenge of finding the missing plaque.

THE STORY CONTINUES!

I very rarely check my emails on my telephone, so a month later when my wife and I came home from another Forties weekend early on Monday evening I found I had been contacted by a James Coates who had read my post and sent me details of an auction together with a photograph of what appeared to be the blue plaque but without its powder coated paint.

Amazingly enough the auction was taking place in the village hall in Pembridge in Herefordshire and was in progress at the time, so I called and spoke to them and they passed me to the seller who was in the room at the time. I explained to him that I thought the plaque may have come from Topps Tiles in Welwyn Garden City and would he be kind enough to remove it from the sale until we could establish whether the plaque had been stolen, to which he agreed.

Having secured the plaque for the present I then contacted Ron Warmington the ex Chairman of the Bentley Drivers Club who had presented the plaque to Topps Tiles to inform him of the situation and after some time and discussions amongst other members of the committee who presented the plaque it was remembered, that Topps Tiles had said they would need to get planning permission before putting it up and one of the committee had taken the plaque home for safe keeping, whereupon Covid reared its ugly head and the plaque was forgotten about, until now.

Word had now spread of the missing plaque which triggered Sean O’Connell to remember he had taken the plaque home for safe keeping and by all accounts had stored it in his shed of all places. It seems that when these things are manufactured it is normal to make two and to pick the best for powder coating which explains why there are two in existence, which enabled John Godwin the Deputy Chairman of Eastern Region to purchase the plaque that was in the auction so we now have a surfeit of plaques. Almost an heir and a spare!

I have to say I’m delighted to know we have found the missing the plaque, especially as it was only due to a sheer fluke that I happened to go to the forties weekend in Welwyn Garden City and thought a photograph with the plaque would be a nice shot for my Facebook page and also thanks to the eagle eyed James Coates who spotted the plaque in the auction.

I have just been informed that the plaque is now back in the hands of Topps Tiles who have promised to display it on their wall, I shall now have to go back and get the photograph I called in to take on my first visit.