A visit from Duncan of Brightwells with his MG.

Today we welcomed to Bridge Classic Cars Duncan Potter, Classic & Vintage Auction Consultant from Brightwells auctioneers with his beautiful 1931 MG C.

The Brightwells story: “Established in 1846, Brightwells is a leading provider of auction services, estate agency and chartered surveying, serving customers principally in the UK, but also in Europe, the North Americas and Asia Pacific. Its principal activities include auctions of fine art, vehicles, horses, machinery, agricultural livestock and land; estate agency for residential property sales, residential lettings and farm & land sales; professional services of chartered surveying, including land management, for urban and rural land owners.

In the UK, Brightwells annually serves more than 50 thousand businesses and members of the general public. The head office and air-conditioned sales centre is established at Easters Court, Leominster, and is one out of fourteen venues across England and Wales from which we operate.

Brightwells’ strategy is to build long-term partnerships with our customers. With their support, we aim to maximise the potential of our traditional business –through a combination of enhanced quality of service, creative marketing, knowledgeable & experienced professionals and cost efficiency –while pursuing profitable growth by migrating our customers to new ranges of auctions and services such as real-time online auctions and product sourcing. We are also relentlessly working to encourage new customers to take advantage of our quality services and experience.

We are committed to helping all of our customers succeed by becoming the leader in the delivery of auction and professional services.”

1990s American Collector Cars Destroyed in HBO Film Set Blaze

Source: Motorious

At least 20 classic American cars circa 1990 have been destroyed in a fire that engulfed 613 Automotive Group during the early hours of Thursday morning.

A ferocious blaze has ripped through a beloved car dealership used by HBO for the upcoming TV series I Know This Much Is True. A total of 20 classic vehicles were totalled as the fire took grip during the early hours of Thursday morning.

The cause of the incident is yet to be established, but authorities believe the inferno started near the dealership entrance around 12.45am on May 9, located on Mainstreet, Elenville. Filming had reportedly finished only 90 minutes beforehand. 

No less than 15 fire crews from surrounding counties tackled the emergency head on. However, despite an 11-hour fight to subdue the flames, 613 Automotive Group suffered total destruction.

Cars claimed by the furnace included various American classics. Several circa 1990 Chevrolet Corvettes and Camaros were incinerated during the incident, supplied to the HBO production crew via a film-car company owned by Automobile Magazine New York bureau chief Jamie Kitman.

Further losses include a C1500 pickup, a 454 SS pickup and a super-low-mileage 1990 Chevrolet Beretta Indy Pace Car replica.

The 613 Automotive Group used-car dealership was dressed as a Chevrolet/Pontiac/Oldsmobile/Isuzu showroom for the miniseries starring Mark Ruffalo and Juliette Lewis. The story partially takes place in October of 1990 and is currently scheduled for broadcast later this year.

Alongside the loss of various classic collector cars, firefighters could only watch as HBO’s filming equipment caught alight. Production of the TV series, based on Wally Lamb’s novel of the same name, has been temporarily shut down as a result.

Despite the evident loss of the entirety of the business, fortunately no one was injured. Families from the surrounding areas have been displaced for safety precautions, while roads surrounding the showroom are closed for public safety.

The general manager, Chris Busby, commented: “The business is a total loss.” He continued: “There’s nothing left, it’s a huge loss for us and HBO. They are just as heartbroken as we are.”

“The whole front side of the building where the showrooms were … fire was coming out of the windows and it progressed back through the garage rapidly,” Ellenville Fire Chief John Avery told Spectrum News.

Investigations into the blaze are ongoing.

Source: Motorious

On our travels…

Monday’s are a good day for the staff here at Bridge Classic Cars. In theory, Monday is a day where the technicians are not required to work. You see, we work a four day week here, Tuesday to Friday with the team being able to enjoy a three day weekend; Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Having said that, a lot of the team choose to work Monday’s so they can get a lot of their projects pushed forward.

For other’s it’s a day to spend with the family. Going out and about in Suffolk. It’s normally a day we get to capture some of the incredible sights of Suffolk and the fantastic cars also out enjoying a Monday off…

Here we are in Felixstowe where we spotted this stunning Ferrari.

And then, we captured the little MG enjoying a spot of lunch in Rendlesham.

The Turks Head Beer, Cider & Gin Festival

This weekend saw the fourth year of The Turk’s Head Beer, Cider and Gin Festival. We were there with our good friends Jack and Arabella on Sunday to experience first hand the amazing selection of ales, real ciders and unusual gins in the marquee.

Thank you as always and we’ll see you next year.

“The Turk’s Head is an award winning proper country pub serving perfectly kept local real ales. We are well known for our extensive gin selection and wine list, from our wonderful house Merlot to a fragrant Chablis from our fine wine list, with many available by the glass. We also have a fabulous restaurant and use the finest local ingredients to create menus offering beautifully executed seasonal dishes.We welcome dogs in the bar and the snug and they can often be found curled up in front of one of our log fires on a chilly afternoon, after a long walk in the beautiful Suffolk countryside. Our ‘Indulgent Brunch’ is available on Saturdays from 10am until 2pm. You can enjoy a bowl of porridge with caramelised apples, a full English breakfast or huevos rancheros along with many other dishes. There is an indulgent drinks list to accompany it with teas and coffees, juices and smoothies, brunch cocktails and fizz.

We are extremely proud of our team and our pub. We have been named ‘Best Pub in Suffolk ‘ for the last two years and we have been in the finals of the Great British Pub Awards every year since we reopened in 2015. Please take a look at all the delicious options. We look forward to offering you a warm welcome at The Turks Head.”