1 Issigonis's first design sketch for the Mini was drawn on a napkin in Switzerland.

2 In 1961, racing driver Stirling Moss was banned for a year for speeding in a Mini, allegedly while testing it for a Sunday paper.

3 In 1964, BMC tested a 2.3-litre Mini with engines at both ends. It was so fast development was dropped.

4 Rumour has it Issigonis designed the door bins in the original Mini to hold a bottle of gin and several tonics. Or maybe it was just pints of milk.

5 How many people can you fit in a Mini? The record is 66, apparently.

6 Longest Mini convoy? 269 cars.

7 Joanne Westlake was the fi rst person to be born in a Mini.

8 Actor Kevin Spacey once paid $130,000 for the last classic Mini Cooper to be built.



9 Most famous death in a Mini? Marc Bolan of T Rex, who was in a crash in a 1275 GT.

10 The breathtaking escape through the Turin sewers by gold bar-filled Mini Coopers in The Italian Job was filmed in Coventry.

(Source: Mini: An Intimate Biography)