Bringing legends back to life

As the National Motorcycle Museum turns 40, join MCN on a guided tour of the very best of British motorcycling.

Museum Director James Hewing is our guide for the day

Britain used to rule the roads when it came to a world-leading motorcycle industry. Those halcyon days may be behind us now but the memories are being kept alive in a city that was once at the beating heart of bike production.

Birmingham’s National Motorcycle Museum (NMM) turns 40 next week and will celebrate in style with the annual Museum LIVE event this weekend. So, what’s the story behind the biggest collection of British bikes in the world?

It starts with a patriot

The museum hums with low murmurs of appreciation, and delicious smells from the café linger in the air as visitors flow in. But for now we’ll leave the splendour of the main displays and instead head to the lobby hot on the heels of museum director James Hewing. He begins by pointing to a photograph on the wall of Roy Richards – founder of the NMM in 1984 – and labels him as both a Birmingham man and a patriot.

This is where the National Motorcycle Museum’s story starts. Richards’ career began in the building trade, and he made his money in plant hire, but “he was a real entrepreneur,” says Hewing. “Rather than go and sit on a desert island like some people would do with the money he made, he wondered what he was going to do with all of his motorcycles once he sold the business.”

Richards loved British motorcycles and had built up a 350-strong collection of them with an emphasis on Nortons, but also BSAs, Triumphs and more. Wanting to share the bikes and their history, he decided to create his own museum so people from all over the country could appreciate Britain’s engineering prowess.

“That was a crazy thing to do – in general terms, museums don’t make money,” says Hewing. “But he wanted to do something for Britain, and he loved bikes.”

Richards began a legacy that pays homage to Britain’s years as the biggest motorcycle manufacturing nation in the world.

“He got planning permission in the late 70s, and it took a few years to build,” explains Hewing. “It was opened in October 1984 by Geoff Duke, Roy’s hero, to great fanfare.

The Ormonde was built in London from 1900-1904

“Originally Roy had planned to have eight halls on ground level. But very quickly he realised that while it was his dream and he was doing it for Britain, it also had to pay its way.

“So, what was originally going to be eight halls was converted into conference space so he could initially host bike-related things. But over the years we’ve become one of the biggest standalone conference venues in Britain.”

The National Motorcycle Museum remained Richards’ hobby and livelihood until his death in 2008 where it became his legacy. Today, it’s still owned by his wife Christine and sons Nick and Simon, and Hewing has been responsible for the day-to-day management for the past decade.

Each year there is a fund-raiser

All the bikes are kept in proper running order

“I’ve always been steeped in bikes,” he says. “I restored a 1948 bike when I was 15 and it’s always been my thing. All I’ve done here is what I would want to see.

“We do things that other museums don’t. We’re the Judas Priest… no, the Black Sabbath of museums,” he laughs. “We make the museum live. We fire things up, people can smell them, hear them running. We’re lucky we’ve got a subject matter we can do things with, and we’re genuinely unique and different. But we want this institution to expand and grow for future generations to enjoy.”

Today, there are 850 motorcycles on display in the museum throughout five halls, and all of them (with the obvious exception of a wooden Bonneville) can be fired up. Many of the bikes frequently leave the museum for the likes of Goodwood Revival, Shelsley Walsh climbs and even ‘Try a Classic’ days with friends of the museum.

“Halls 1-4 are road bikes, Hall 5 is competition bikes,” says Hewing. “And in Hall 1 they run in year order from 1898 to the 1960s… we’ve also got a lot of one-make machines.”

Celebrate Triumph’s history

In Hall 1 are the likes of pioneering ‘forecars’, Vincents, HRDs and more early motorcycles, and in Hall 2 are the big blocks of motorcycles from manufacturers – as well as some iconic prototypes.

Halls 3 and 4 are home to the bulk of British industry through the years, all organised from A-Z so you can see where the brand began and how the brand’s machines developed over time.

Aside from the bikes, there is an archive filled with dusty pages of technical literature, original motorcycle documents and a copy or two of MCN. The museum also hosts H&H auctions, raffles off one of their collection every six months and of course, hosts the annual LIVE event every October.

Norton Nemesis V8 prototype

Disaster as fire strikes

Although the museum was born out of the decline in the British motorcycle industry, it has also had its own turbulent times to overcome. A pivotal time in the museum’s history, the premises caught fire in 2003 which devastated the museum’s collection. The fire broke out after a discarded cigarette ignited old air conditioning filters and their boxes.

“We’re just getting through the last three bikes now which are the works Rudges,” says Hewing. “People talk about sprinkler systems, but it spread through the roof. There were a lot of bikes damaged, but there are four more bikes in the collection now than there were at the time of the fire.”

Around 300 bikes were damaged, with many of the more easily accessible bikes replaced, and the special pieces restored. Now, there are three damaged bikes left, one of which is Graham Walker’s TT-winning Rudge.

Go on lads, let’s hear it running

“We’ve come back stronger,” says Hewing. “Nothing was lost completely and if it was rare, it was restored. It was testament to Roy’s tenacity and determination.

“He had an iron will. He stood here on the day and said ‘we’ll be back stronger’. It was just another challenge for him.”

It’s not just the ownership of the museum that has stayed in the family. Colin Wall has been with the museum since the beginning and was a good friend of Richards. He was the museum’s chief restorer and despite being 82 years old, still tinkers with some of the bikes today. But most of the restoration work now falls on the shoulders of his son, Wes.

Volunteers help keep the show on the road

“My dad started to work for the museum in 1972, long before the museum was ever built,” he explains. “All the bikes were going into storage at that time, so there were about 300 bikes when the museum opened in 1984.”

Wes has been at the museum for more than 20 years, restoring around 80 bikes in that time. “We did a lot in the first few years after the fire,” he says. “It was devastating, especially for dad. It was his life’s work in there. It reminded me of the Blitz in a way, seeing the three halls completely burned out by the fire.

“The worst one I saw was a crank shaft and a set of gears in a frame. The worst one I managed to restore was the 1914 Matchless TT. It was the only one known that was built for the TT… but we had to find another engine. That took three or four years.”

Every restoration involves a complete strip down of the motorcycle, to ‘every last nut, bolt and washer’. When Richards opened the museum, he wanted the bikes to look as though they were still in the showroom and available to be raced and ridden – that philosophy remains true today.

What’s next?

Now the museum is thriving. With more bikes than there have ever been, there is a full event calendar inviting motorcycle enthusiasts to the museum. Bike clubs and appreciation societies are constantly hosting meet, greets and ride-ins, and Hewing is always on the lookout for the next thing to make the museum come alive for the British public. He’s also keen to keep Richards’ vision of a comprehensive history of British bikes all in one place.

“We’ve got a 1991 Triumph Trident,” says Hewing. “It’s the equivalent of Roy opening the museum in 1984 and having a bike from 1954. These are old bikes now – it’s a moveable feast.

“We’re not a museum that just stays in the past. Some of these Hinckley bikes are now 30 years old, they’re actually old bikes now. We’re moving with the times.”

You can experience the NMM in its glory any day of the week from 8.30am-5.30pm, but if you want to see it at its very best, get yourself down to Museum LIVE this weekend. With stands, fire ups, free museum entry as well as talks with the likes of Henry Cole, it’s one not to be missed.

Early Hinckley bikes take their place in history

The National Motorcycle Museum

Founded 40 years ago, the museum (www.nationalmotorcyclemuseum.co.uk) is home to the largest collection of British motorcycles in the world. Located in Birmingham, the former heartland of the UK’s motorcycle industry, everything inside is restored to original condition to allow people to step back in time and admire the brilliance of the British biking.