Overview

MG was a home-grown concept that became an international success, bringing the small market town of Abingdon onto the global map. MG - Made in Abingdon recounts the inside story of the famous factory, recognising that the most important aspect of MG's success was its team - the tea-boys and girls, the shop floor workers, the engineers and racers, the apprentices and management. From memories of the production line to recollections of racing incidents, the untold story of MG from the men and women who worked in the Abingdon factory is revealed for the first time in a book that is both nostalgic and historically important.

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9781787112681

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Reviews

Subtitled Echoes from the Shopfloor, this 160 pager makes for a welcome change from politically charged volumes about the British car industry. Bob Frampton collated hundreds of interviews with workers at Abingdon between Thirties and the gut-wrenching spectacle of the factory's 1979 Jubilee celebrations, when the marque was being celebrated virtually in the shadow of a wreaking ball. This is social history at its best, as much about skilled trades, shop floor romances and lower league football as making cars. It makes a heartening, prideful change from the hackneyed tales of strikes and protests, and it would be interesting to compare the lives of MG workers through five decades with those at the same location building Minis today. - Classic Cars. We are used to reading about the big names in MG's history, but this book gives a voice to some of the thousands who worked in the Abingdon factory, helping create the cars we love but without achieving personal fame or glory. It records memories from men and women on the production line, in the offices and elsewhere, recorded at first hand and encompassing events that are memorable on both company wife and very personal levels. It certainly opens a window on aspects of MG life that rarely get an airing in public. - MG Enthusiast. Written by Bob Frampton who is an active volunteer at Abingdon County Hall Museum, Oxfordshire, where his research has uncovered much of Abingdon's unwritten history, and has resulted in the unique collection of personal stories that appear in this book. A must read of every MG enthusiast. - Safety Fast.

Subtitled Echoes from the Shopfloor, this 160 pager makes for a welcome change from politically charged volumes about the British car industry. Bob Frampton collated hundreds of interviews with workers at Abingdon between Thirties and the gut-wrenching spectacle of the factory's 1979 Jubilee celebrations, when the marque was being celebrated virtually in the shadow of a wreaking ball. This is social history at its best, as much about skilled trades, shop floor romances and lower league football as making cars. It makes a heartening, prideful change from the hackneyed tales of strikes and protests, and it would be interesting to compare the lives of MG workers through five decades with those at the same location building Minis today. - Classic Cars. We are used to reading about the big names in MG's history, but this book gives a voice to some of the thousands who worked in the Abingdon factory, helping create the cars we love but without achieving personal fame or glory. It records memories from men and women on the production line, in the offices and elsewhere, recorded at first hand and encompassing events that are memorable on both company wife and very personal levels. It certainly opens a window on aspects of MG life that rarely get an airing in public. - MG Enthusiast. Written by Bob Frampton who is an active volunteer at Abingdon County Hall Museum, Oxfordshire, where his research has uncovered much of Abingdon's unwritten history, and has resulted in the unique collection of personal stories that appear in this book. A must read of every MG enthusiast. - Safety Fast. An automotive book unlike any other, Bob Frampton's 'Echoes from the shopfloor' recounts personal memories of MG's Abingdon plant from the people who lived them, covering everything from recollections of the production line to the firm's sporting achievements. The book goes even further than that, however, moving on to delve into the human stories of the company's workers; they range from the MG Sports and Vegetables Day of July 1942, and a 1979 stabbing by a horse and bitten by a donkey twice in as many days - we kid you not. Period photographs illustrate the book, but the real treasure is without doubt the stories themselves, which offer a rare and fascinating insight into the life in the factory, as well as being a valuable piece of social history. - Classic & Sports Car.

Author Information

Having left school at the age of 15, Bob Frampton pursued a short career in the army before returning to civilian life and completing a degree in History at Durham University. Completing a second degree in Law he taught in further education for the predominance of his working life. Upon retiring Bob became an active volunteer at Abingdon County Hall Museum, Oxfordshire, where his research has uncovered much of Abingdon's unwritten history, and has resulted in the unique collection of personal stories that appear in this book.

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