It happens to the best of us and I’m no exception - typos and inaccurate information that is.

Apologies to Darren Bradbury, owner of this lovely 1951 Douglas Rod Model, which is the subject of an article in the just landed VVC JOURNAL. I managed to put out the un-amended version of the final text, the penultimate paragraph published in the magazine was wrong. The correct text which should have gone out in the spring issue is as follows (amended/correct paragraph highlighted in bold type).

A Bit of Douglas Nostalgia

In 2013 VVC held a joint publicity event with Mozzino café bar, located at the time in London’s Broadwick Street, in the heart of Soho. I didn’t get along to it but I remember seeing the photos in the VVC JOURNAL, edited by Ashley Lenton back then. I did subsequently visit for a coffee after the event when I was next in town and clocked the blue painted Douglas Rod Model displayed in the window. Also on display at the back of the bar was a Messerschmitt GS150, adorned with an original 1963 Cortina d’Ampezzo Eurovespa legshield banner; naturally I had to take photos of both!

The blue Rod was loaned to Mozzino by club member Darren Bradbury, who some will know as a bit of a magpie when it comes to collecting Vespas and accessories! A friendly likeable chap with a discerning taste in original paint scooters, Darren is always very good about me visiting him for a nose around his garage with my camera, which I’ve done on a few occasions down the years. My latest visits were during November and December 2019 when I got to photograph a few of Darren’s bikes for the JOURNAL – keep an eye open for those in upcoming issues. The blue Rod as you can see didn’t escape my attention, resulting in the accompanying shots.

Back to May 2013 and while searching online, Darren’s attention was drawn by an advertisement for the Rod. Often such adverts when opened are old, expired posts from a few years previous. However, on closer inspection Darren realised this one was live. The Vespa was being auctioned in the West Midlands “from a deceased estate”. Not that he really needed another Rod; he put in a telephone bid, which as it happened, was enough to secure the lot. The history, although not extensive, turned out to be very interesting! Present with the Rod was the original bill of sale, dated October 2nd 1951. It was initially sold by Official Distributors and Retailers of the Douglas Vespa and Douglas Ape, H.A. Fox & Co. Ltd at 3-5 Burlington Gardens, Old Bond Street, London W1, to a J.Carini Esq. of 28-29 Odessa Street, Dowlais, Glamorgan. Curious that Mr. Carini living at the time in Dowlais, a county borough of Merthyr Tydfil, opted to buy his scooter from central London, when there must have been dealers located nearer to him in South Wales? VVC Chairman Roger Smith did some digging and discovered the Carini’s were an Italian family that ran a corner cafe in Odessa Street, Dowlais – musing that perhaps having a new Vespa was a fond memory for Mr Carini of his former life back home in Italy?!

Owner, Darren had wondered if 226 was the number of Vespas & Apes supplied by Fox to date; probably indicating that they’d been importing them prior to Douglas production, as they weren’t likely to have supplied 226 Vespas in the first 2-3 months of Douglas made machines. If anyone has information or can shed further light on this, please let me know via email - vespamore@hotmail.co.uk would be interesting to know..

Anyhow, all this is a tantalising glimpse back in time; amazing this Vespa still has its original sale documents and how fitting that 62 years later it found its way back to Soho, just a few streets away from where Mr. Carini first purchased it! Nice also that Darren got hold of it; him being a sucker for retaining the historical value and importance of such objects, rather than getting it shot blasted and painted like others would be tempted to do!

Thanks to Darren Bradbury and also to Roger Smith for his sleuthing skills.

Words and photos by Paul Hart.

Always nice to show the photos off larger outside the confines of the magazine, so here they are again, plus a few others..