Can you believe that right here, on this unassuming street in Surbiton, a tiny garage gave birth to a giant in the world of motorsport – the Cooper Car Company? This modest blue plaque marks the former works of the Cooper Car Company, a name synonymous with racing glory and thrilling innovation.
Standing here today, it’s hard to picture the hustle and bustle of this place in its heyday. But back in the 1920s, Charles Cooper, a car mechanic, bought this plot of land. From a row of sheds, he ran his modest garage, offering breakdown recovery services and servicing cars that raced at Brooklands, just a short drive away.
Charles’s son John, a racing enthusiast, joined the business in 1946. Together, they built their first car, a revolutionary design that turned the motorsport world on its head. Called the Cooper 500, this car boasted a rear-mounted engine, a radical idea at the time. It was tested on the nearby A3, a testament to the ingenuity of the Cooper team. These early Coopers went on to dominate the Formula Three category.
The garage on Hollyfield Road grew with the success of the Cooper Car Company. In the 1950s, the sheds were replaced with a unified structure, the present building, erected in 1957-8. The production workshops were on the ground floor and, although described as dark and gloomy by mechanic Mike Barney, were the heart of the Cooper Car Company. The offices were on the first floor, with the racing car designer Owen ‘The Beard’ Maddock’s drawing office on the right. It’s been suggested that the unusual curved façade, designed by Richard Maddock, Owen’s father, was inspired by the curved car chassis designed by his son.
The Cooper Car Company was a pioneer in its move to the rear-mounted engine layout, now the standard in Formula One. This move, along with their distinctive curved chassis, propelled them to the peak in motorsport. In 1958, Stirling Moss won the Argentine Grand Prix driving a Cooper. A Frenchman, Maurice Trintignant won the Monaco Grand Prix in the same year. The Cooper Formula One team went on to win the world drivers’ and constructors’ championships in 1959 and 1960 with the Australian-born, Jack Brabham at the wheel. Other famous drivers who wore the Cooper colours included Mike Hawthorne and Jackie Stewart.
The Cooper Car Company even produced the legendary Mini Cooper racing car, manufactured right here at Hollyfield Road. The Mini Cooper’s success in the 1964 Monte Carlo Rally and back-to-back wins in the British Touring Car Championship solidified its place in motor racing history. The Cooper Car Company left this location in the mid 1960s, moving their design and manufacturing business, but its legacy lives on. Today, it is hard to imagine the impact of the Cooper Car Company without this humble garage in Surbiton. It’s a reminder that even the most iconic stories often start from the most unassuming beginnings.