Rebirth of the MINI

09/15/21 • 11 min

1 Listener

BMW unveiled its redesigned MINI for the first time on 15th September, 1997; the eve of the Frankfurt Motor Show. Its predecessor had been in production for 41 years.

Reborn as a ‘city’ car, rather than a micro compact, and with Union flags painted on its roof, this was the moment the iconic brand became seen as cheeky, sporty and British - but not, actually, especially small.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how the MINI has its roots in the Suez Crisis; ask why the similar VW Beetle reboot was discontinued in 2019; and reveal how many people can officially squeeze into a ‘new’ Mini...

Further Reading:

• ‘ROVER SHOWS NEW MINI; LAUNCH IS 2000’ (Automotive News Europe, 1997): https://europe.autonews.com/article/19970915/ANE/709150811/rover-shows-new-mini-launch-is-2000

• How the BBC covered the launch (1997): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is-9aI7utFQ&t=112s

• ‘The history of the Mini in pictures’ (Daily Telegraph, 2013): https://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/picturegalleries/10457166/The-history-of-the-Mini-in-pictures.html?frame=2737732

For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/Retrospectors

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.

#90s #Technology #Germany

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BMW unveiled its redesigned MINI for the first time on 15th September, 1997; the eve of the Frankfurt Motor Show. Its predecessor had been in production for 41 years.

Further Reading:

• ‘ROVER SHOWS NEW MINI; LAUNCH IS 2000’ (Automotive News Europe, 1997): https://europe.autonews.com/article/19970915/ANE/709150811/rover-shows-new-mini-launch-is-2000

• How the BBC covered the launch (1997): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is-9aI7utFQ&t=112s

• ‘The history of the Mini in pictures’ (Daily Telegraph, 2013): https://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/picturegalleries/10457166/The-history-of-the-Mini-in-pictures.html?frame=2737732

For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/Retrospectors

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.

#90s #Technology #Germany

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Previous Episode

Oh Say, Can You See?

‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ is now well-known as the USA’s national anthem - but when Francis Scott Key wrote the words on 14th September, 1814, it was merely the latest in a series of patriotic poems he’d penned; this one concerning the British assault on the coastal fortification of Fort McHenry.

It was only when - bizarrely - it was set to the tune of an old English drinking song, ‘To Anacreon in Heaven’, that it began to gain traction - and another 119 years before it became the nation’s official ‘choon.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly learn what a ‘contrafactum’ is; explore why the US national anthem is so notoriously tricky to sing; and question what meaning ‘the land of the free’ held for Baltimore’s enslaved Africans...

Next Episode

The First Student Newspaper

The Cornell Daily Sun - the oldest continuously independent college daily newspaper in the United States - published its first issue on 16th September, 1880. It featured some campus sports reports, some horrible amateur poetry, and even some jokes.

It wasn’t until seven years later that a British University caught up with its own equivalent: The Student, at Edinburgh University; although it did have celebrity founder Robert Louis Stevenson up its sleeve.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider the difference between UK and US student journalism; speak to the Sun’s current Editor about how she can possibly do her degree at the same time as running a daily paper; and discover what an Autophone was...

Further Reading:

• ‘About The Sun’ (The Cornell Daily Sun):

https://cornellsun.com/about/

• ‘About The Student’ (Edinburgh Student Newspaper): https://studentnewspaper.org/about

• ‘The Cornell Daily Sun: A Documentary: Part 4 (Oliver Bundy, 2007): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIucgSBrWKk

For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/Retrospectors

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.

#1800s #Arts #Inventions #US #UK

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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