The Drivers’ Club at Bowcliffe Hall is, without doubt, one of the most wonderful places in Yorkshire to dine, entertain or simply sit and enjoy a drink on the sun-soaked, south-facing terrace. Last week, a unique delivery arrived that will make parking your derrière in the glamorous private members’ club just that little bit more special – as 22 rather incredible chairs descended at Bowcliffe.
Set amongst the sumptuous Drivers’ Club décor are original motoring art and artefacts from artists including Gordon Crosby, Bryan de Grineau, Russell Brockbank, Geo Ham and Yorkshire’s own Alan Fearnley. They sit alongside specially commissioned, bespoke pieces and motoring memorabilia, painstakingly collected over four years. A continuation of the deep-rooted love of motoring and attention to detail that envelops every inch of the Drivers’ Club, the new ‘Blower Chairs’ are named after one of Bentley’s most famous cars, ‘the Blower’.
A model developed by the ‘Bentley Boys’, a group of wealthy racing enthusiasts who claimed a string of victories in Blowers at Le Mans and Grand Prix races in the 1920s, the Blower is described by car historian Doug Nye as ‘the Concord of its time’ and ‘the most glamorous racing car of its era’, but only 53 were made. Its legendary status was acknowledged at the 2012 Goodwood Festival of Speed when Bonhams sold a record-breaking single seat 1929 Blower No. 1, previously owned by racing driver Sir Henry ‘Tim’ Birkin. It achieved another record performance – as the most expensive British-made car ever sold at auction (a considerable £5,042,000).
The upholstery in Blowers was noted to be surprisingly comfortable and the distinctive racing green leather bucket seats with stitched panels lent themselves perfectly to a chair design.
Now you can sit in a chair that emulates the Blower’s very own seat and that matches Bentley’s hand-built car interiors, where wood, leather and metal workmanship is exquisite. Finished in beautiful green leather with a scalloped design and turned legs – the chairs are another example of the love and attention that has been poured into the Club.
The final flourish on each of the Drivers’ Club Bower Chairs is a silvered brass plaque engraved with the name of a Bentley Boy driver, or someone associated with their success or raucous lifestyle. Names include W.O. Bentley, who founded Bentley Motors in London in 1919; Nobby Clarke, their chief mechanic; Margaret Allan, who drove a Bentley to victory at Brooklands and became the first woman to do so; and Dorothy Padgett who funded the Bentley Boys racing exploits. When asked the most difficult decision to make about the chairs, Bowcliffe CEO Jonathan Turner admitted that choosing which names to include took a little time.
Wonderfully British and joyfully nostalgic, only the best British craftsmen were involved in making each element of Bentley Blower chairs. We highly recommend testing them out in the Drivers’ Club soon!