the art of ruddell

Some Jaguar Cars history: Browns Lane; 60 Shop; Assembly Line; Marketing Pictures . . that you never expected to see again!
I am still going through old boxes of 35mm transparencies that were consigned to the waste bin in August 1981, so I don't know the story behind a lot of these pictures. However for those of us who worked there . . they tell their own story!!

From my Apprentice Report Book: drawing showing the XJ-S backlight that I did in January 1972 in Body Experimental. This was actually a full size wooden model, painted burgundy I remember. The first bodyshell, which we were spotwelding together, was still a few weeks away!!

my job was to draw out the shape of the backlight, using the roof, boot and rear quarter panel drawings . . not until the rear quarter and boot panel pressings changed in 1991 could the backlight be enlarged by moving it's bottom edge back to the boot opening line: a mod I envisaged right from the start on my sketch!

great picture of the Main Gate on Browns Lane as I remember it: This is where we handed in our pass out when taking out an experimental Jaguar. Thank you Alan Joseph for the image!

GEC Block from the staff car park . . not many foreign cars to be seen . .


The Body Drawing Office before the working day commenced, during the long hot summer of 1976 . . .

hard at work on an XJ-S door casing drawing . . I still use that pencil, set square and file (by the window sill for sharpening). .

Geoffrey Robinson commissioned the Italian studios to submit possible XJ40 designs: My drawing of the full size plaster of paris model from Bertone was instrumental in me moving over to the Styling Studio

2021 reproduction of my 1974 drawing, drawn with the same H pencil that I used in 1974 on 0.005" Ozalid drawing film that is 40 years old . . I have added XJ40 packaging details and a period correct Drawing Office sheet.

picture recently discovered by Andy Davies . . The Body Engineering trainees outside the apprentice training school at Radford, probably 1973-1974, as they show up in the following pictures from the Body Office from 1975 (with shorter hair!!)

hectic times in the Body Drawing Office, you know who you are . .

lunch time interlude in the Body Drawing Office . .

48 years on, still poking around luxury Jaguars at Jaguar Heritage, Gaydon: Andy Davies, Terry Dalton, Nigel Thompson, John Heninghem and Cliff Ruddell . .

Whilst lecturing at Loughborough University in 1989 I discovered this 10th scale wooden model under a table . . .

It looked like Malcolm Sayer's XJ13 wind tunnel model that was tested at the University in the early 60s. We fired up the old windtunnel and created a series of "period" pictures . . .

Also there was a 10th scale model of the 1953 mystery project the Brontosaurus, a design so secret that neither William Heynes nor Lofty England knew about it . .

We ran the Brontosaurus as well. The tunnel hadn't been used for years and the building soon filled up with toxic fumes bringing loud protests!! Thank you Mick Cann for the camera work!!

XJ13 in the Browns Lane car park in front of several Series 1 LHD XJ6s and XJ12s . . .

Never seen this picture before (Thank you Alan Moore FB) but saw George Mason working on the XJ13 many times . . .

Immediately after Sir William retired Lofty England retrieved the wrecked XJ-13 and had it rebuilt. George Mason and Pete Dodds re-assembled it, as well as fabricating a brand new exhaust system. Phil Weaver looks on at the front of the car.

on Friday evenings, when everyone had gone home, George would blast it up and down the factory link roads . . These two pictures, cut out of a magazine, have been lost since I left Jaguar in 1989 . . just found them in my attic!!

The Jaguar XJ13 lived in the Browns Lane showroom seemingly for years, it was a permanent fixture . . .

In more recent times it travels a lot: this was the Birmingham Street display of 1984 . . . Jim Randle and George Mason aboard

I remember this day, Friday 27th February 1980 . . we wandered up to the main gate where Alan Jones was taking delivery of his XJ-S

as pointed out in a recent Classic Jaguar you can have any colour as long as it's white . . what!!? . .

I vauguely remember this ramp thing, turns out it was the inspection ramp situated outside road test. Thanks John Heninghem for the info . .

at last some other colours . . protective panels can be seen protecting the front wings

the car finally has its wheels and looks to be nearing completion, as it inches along the moving track.

this must be in the 70s, a product line up on the (yet to be opened) Kenilworth By-Pass (A46)

Jaguar Photographic took countless amazing photos over the years but these two are among of my favourites!!

created with a long exposure, with the lens zoomed at the last second, as far as I remember!!

just picked up an original XJ6 brochure at Race Retro - didn't know that they used the same photo technique in there!!

looking clean and tidy, the automated V-12 cylinder head line in 60 Shop

so you thought robotic cages were a recent innovation . . . this is the early 70s

V-12 cylinder head line from a different angle

also picked up the orginal Genesis of the Jaguar V-12 brochure at Race Retro. I think we were all presented with one of these in 1971 but mine was long gone . .

so it was great to get a copy and see the awesome transparency cutaways with 8 overlays of engine detailing . . .

A view across the car park from outside the original Styling Studio door . . .

Styling Studio when I joined in 1978 - my feasibility drawing board on the right hand side!!

Beautiful quarter scale model, we're not sure who it was modelled by, or of what it is!! Maybe XJ21?? . . .

master craftsman Ken Boulton looks at the clay model of the XJ41 . . the Helfet-Young-Ruddell display on the wall was completed late into the evening the night before being presented to Michael Edwardes in 1980

it's a clear, sunny morning: usually a sign that Bob Blake would come to work in his Ferrari Daytona, which he rebuilt by hand . . .

Bill Jones and Iain Young look ready for the day in the new Browns Lane Studio . . my full size XJ40 rendering still lurks amongst the rafters

struggling on in the new studio ... dreaming of new and futuristic Daimler DS420s!! Alas they were never to be: production of the DS420 ceased in 1992 after 4116 cars had been built.

a young Stuart Spencer pauses, mid air-brush stroke . . . the question is: apart from me and Stuart, who are hard at work, "where is everybody?"!!

a staged colour and trim picture; Norman Davies and Colin Holtum discuss a headrest

clay modeller Martin Brough scanning the XK41 clay with the Stiefelmayer digitiser

photographer Mick Cann checks trim samples. These few photos were part of a careers presentation we gave to school leavers about design. We also showed them round the assembly lines and then gave them a spin in a Jaguar!! Those were the days . .

home-time at the Styling Studio door, located on the back corner of the Experimental Block

Stuart Spencer and the Rally Opel Manta - note the camouflaged XJ40s in the Jaguar experimental car park - this is around 1985. The windows at the top right of the picture are the original Styling Studio

" just listen to your designers Knight " . . . Sir William talks to Bob Knight, with Doug Thorpe in the background during a car park viewing of the XJ40 clay

"we don't make decisions . . we reach conclusions" . . . Bob Knight explains to Sir William . .

The A-Team outside the main block at Browns Lane: a young looking John Egan and John Edwards!!


Foudroyé par une attaque cérébrale au lendemain de sa cinquantaine en juillet 1999, cet hédoniste est parti en laissant un style Jaguar expressif et revigoré. Il en avait la responsabilité depuis 1984.
from Automobiles Classiques September 1999

Rogue's Gallery - Jaguar Styling team after the move to Whitley . . Well done Stuart for excavating the heating pipes in the roof space to get the photographers onto the roof!! This was Geoff Lawson's personalised XJ40 - with BBS wheels.
from CAR STYLING September 1999

nice picture of the Series III - yes they did have a back to front No. plate . . . image would be reversed for the European brochures.

a bit of evening speed at the A45-Allesley By Pass roundabout . .

three examples of high speed transport . .

I don't know who this development driver is, but I want his job!!

Richard Cresswell at full chat on the M.I.R.A. banking in the XJ25 ( Series III E-Type )

rare colour photo of the XJ6 development program on the leafy tracks of Clun Forest Shropshire, Richard Cresswell at the wheel of development car XJ4/3

wonderful GKN advert in Motor magazine October 5th 1968, based on one of Jim Graham's photos of Richard in Clun Forest in XJ4/3. Apologies to Motor's graphic designer . . I faded the text "the wrappings" When you take off seems a good enough ad title to me!!

I have never seen this picture before . . Jim Graham and the test XJ6, I presume the day he photographed the flying XJ6 (above) - thank you Les Hughes . . your archives are impressive!!

Peter Taylor in one of the development XJ6s on opposite lock at M.I.R.A.

Peter again on the Pave at M.I.R.A. probably in XJ4/3

Richard Cresswell driving XJ4/4 on the Pave at M.I.R.A. The first 4.2litre car, the bonnet, pre production bulge, needed cutting away for clearance!!. Alan Davies in the co-pilot's seat

Ha! 611 DU spotted on the way back from M.I.R.A. maybe that very evening!! We salute you Mr Router for the fast camera work . . but don't do it again!!

I remember this picture being in Jaguar Topics or something similar. 1974-ish I think: photographed in the Browns Lane car park: Jaguar Engineers also active in Motor Racing - Tim Gath, Jim Graham, Chris Greville-Smith, Dave Kirby, Peter Taylor and Richard Cresswell.

back on the M.I.R.A. Pave this time with the XJ-S. We are uncertain who the driver is . .

not to be outdone by Jim Graham's leaping XJ6 . . Ed Abbott testing the XJ-S for country lane bridge performance!! Taken on the canal bridge at Hartshill this picture was requested by Publicity and took several goes to perfect . . but in the end was never used!!

Ed again, giving XJ-S RDU903W some welly at Nardo in Italy. This car was fitted with a HE engine and was run for 25,000 miles flat out to make sure the engine was robust!! These pictures courtesy of Ed's XJ-S Page on his website.

rare picture of the XJ-S line. Thank you Tony O'Keeffe for the photo!!

rare marketing image of the Series III E-Type, don't remember this picture ever being in a brochure. This looks to be the same car as the E-Type on the M.I.R.A. banking WHP 203J

Have XK6 . . . will travel

XK6 interior beauty, taken the same day as the previous picture I think. The model is a secretary from the Sales Department who Photographic used to "borrow" for publicity photos!! Thank you David Thorn for the information!

plently of space for lounging in the XJ6C . .

the way things were!! the latest in hi-tech . . the 8 track stereo!

XJ-S getaway car . .

like this . . just the essentials

The end of a perfect day.

Keep watching . . . there's plenty more boxes to dig through yet!!!!