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10 Oct 2018, 20:22 (Ref:3855990) | #1 | |
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Donington Museum to close on 5th November
For anyone considering a visit to the Donington Collection - best hurry up.
It is due to close on 5th November 2018. |
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10 Oct 2018, 20:40 (Ref:3855995) | #2 | ||
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Oh no. Terrible news.
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10 Oct 2018, 20:50 (Ref:3855996) | #3 | ||
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Now that is awful news, absolutely fantastic place.
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10 Oct 2018, 21:03 (Ref:3855998) | #4 | |
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So where are they moving it all to?
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10 Oct 2018, 21:09 (Ref:3855999) | #5 | |
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They aren't moving anywhere, it's being closed.
https://www.classicandsportscar.com/...x-museum-close |
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10 Oct 2018, 22:15 (Ref:3856017) | #6 | |
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I was thinking more of where all the cars are going to go
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11 Oct 2018, 02:09 (Ref:3856038) | #7 | |
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Good question. In recent years and I think as a long time tradition quite a lot of the cars were on loan from elsewhere and a few seem to have used it as a place to store cars (usually interesting cars with a history) over winter or for longer periods where they were not planning to use them. In recent times quite a few cars that were owned by the Collection seem to have been sold on where a suitable race category had become popular for those with the wherewithal to buy a car and enjoy it. Of what I saw last time I was there - which I suppose was about 2 years ago now - many would have no place to race at the moment and probably not in the future either. And of course there has been quite a large military vehicle collection present in recent years. Mostly German from WW2 era. There's quite a lot of memorabilia there too. Whether owned or loaned I have no idea. I would imagine there might be some private sales and then perhaps an auction but that is pure speculation on my part. |
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11 Oct 2018, 05:55 (Ref:3856054) | #8 | ||
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A massive massive shame, but there clearly isnt enough paying footfall to keep it open. I assume that the Wheatcrofts family have been subsidising the museums existence for a while, and remember, Kevin isn't actually a racing fan.
The focus for all activities at Donington is now at the Paddock end of the property; it's a pity that the museum (or a part of it) can't be moved to that end, to one of the Formula E buildings perhaps, so that race meeting spectators have an opportunity to visit during race and test days. ISTR that Dr Palmer had some of his old cars on display at Bedford, maybe he should take over the remains of thecWheatcroft collection and combine with his cars in one of the Formula E buildings as suggested. Doubt the business case stacks up though. A great shame. Must visit again before it closes. |
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12 Oct 2018, 16:55 (Ref:3856302) | #9 | ||
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Quote:
I think the article mentioned that there have been something like 2.5 million visitors since it opened. So that's 2.5 million in 45 years. It doesn't sound like a lot in commercial terms if it has to be self financing. Presumably the financing was less of an issue when it was simply part of the circuit's business model. |
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12 Oct 2018, 18:40 (Ref:3856323) | #10 | ||
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Grant, is it possible that since MSV took over the circuit that the museum now has to pay them rent? Or were the buildings not included in the sale?
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12 Oct 2018, 16:24 (Ref:3856298) | #11 | ||
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Very sad news. I first visited just after the Museum opened & have been many times since. Unfortunately I won't be able to get there again before it closes. As has already mentioned, quite a few of the exhibits were loaned, including I think quite a few cars owned by Bernie Ecclestone.
I am just in the process of reading a book about the Schlumpf Collection, & it seems that Tom Wheatcroft was in the process of negotiating a deal with the Schlumpf brothers when their empire suddenly collapsed. Initially Wheatcroft was arranging to take some cars as collatoral for a loan, but further to that investigated buying the entire collection; that came to nought as amomgst other things the French Government refused export licences. |
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14 Oct 2018, 09:40 (Ref:3856776) | #12 | |
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I remember going there on the way back from my grandparents 50th wedding anniversary at Derby when I was a nipper. First time I'd ever been to a race track. As well as the museum, we saw the rover stunt team in action on the start finish straight
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14 Oct 2018, 18:40 (Ref:3856819) | #13 | ||
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Despite attending a few race meetings at Donington every year, I haven't been inside the museum for something like 15-20 years.
As I have the week beginning 29th October off work, I'm going to have to make a trip up there before it closes. |
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14 Oct 2018, 19:11 (Ref:3856824) | #14 | ||
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I went when it was still run by Tom and in its heyday, always heard bad stories about when Kevin ran it.
He has a bizarre fascination with Nazi memorabilia, which I personally find quite disturbing for one so well off AS I have read the odd article about him too, and is clearly not at all interested in racing cars as he has sold a few to fund this odd hobby. I will always be thankful to him for managing to keep DP open after the crook Gillett got away with murder for what he did and got away with, but Kevin was never that bothered in aspects of it. I would think most of the stuff is loaned, and that Palmer will have a plan, he usually does it it usually involves making money, he is not at all interested in history unless it makes him money, shows no real passion for the old times that I have seen. So will probably be car parking or sell it for flats!! So I dont expect it to be re-opened at all. |
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15 Oct 2018, 06:37 (Ref:3856891) | #15 | ||
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Well , you can knock JP all you like but without him British motor racing would be f***ed . I go to Cadwell, Oulton and Donington regularly and the first two have been transformed from under-invested , run down basket cases to places with decent food , good staff and not a scrap of litter. Go to Croft, and see the crap left lying about since the BTCC visited to see how not to do it, and endure Stasi like security staff for the 14 people who still bother turning up, and paying more than MSV prices too .
Of course MSV are in it for a profit - so just like Grovewood etc were. Race circuits aren't charities .... |
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15 Oct 2018, 14:04 (Ref:3856950) | #16 | ||
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19 Oct 2018, 22:30 (Ref:3857823) | #17 | ||
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I visited the museum today and spent a pleasant hour or two there. My focus was the historics (F1 cars from the 2000's to today do nothing much for me and there're quite a number of these in the collection!); I loved the F5000s, F3's (McLaren, Roger Williamson cars). My highlights were the Vanwalls (wow!) and the 60s Grand Prix cars. The BRMs looked resplendent (I would have paid the £12 just to see these) as did the Cosworth 4-wheel drive Grand Prix car. I thought there would have been more Grand Prix cars from the 60s and early 70s but there's actually only a handful.
One thing I hadn't realised was how much the military collection seems to dominate the museum (maybe it's my perception and if I were to actually count them, they probably aren't that many proportionally) but it felt like a bit too many if you ask me. I would have thought that sort of thing belonged to Duxford or the Imperial War Musuem. To my non-expert eye, they all looked rather similar too. What's the point? Storage? Still, I'm glad I went! |
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19 Oct 2018, 22:43 (Ref:3857824) | #18 | |||
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15 Oct 2018, 09:55 (Ref:3856904) | #19 | ||
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I see in The Leicester Mercury today there is a quote from Kevin Wheatcroft saying that the museum didn't fit into the business model of MSV.
I suppose that really, the original museum was another one of Tom's schemes, somewhere to house his collection, and to give members of the public the opportunity to view them. This also encouraged others (such as McLaren) to loan cars to the museum for people to see. Kevin clearly has little of his Dad's passion for motorsport and his interests lie elsewhere. Plus I suppose the museum building is at the wrong end of the circuit now as the original main entrance is no longer the focus of the park, this having moved to the original paddock entrance. It's sad as I see it as another severance of Tom Wheatcroft from the circuit he adored and renovated... |
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