Welsh model car museum to feature on antique show Bargain Hunt

A Welsh model car museum, which is home to a collection of around 5,000 exhibits, is to feature on the popular BBC One TV antiques series Bargain Hunt.

Show presenter and antique expert Charlie Ross, paid a visit with the film crew to the Cloverlands Model Car Museum at its new home in Llanfair Caereinion last autumn.

The museum boasts the largest public collection of model cars in Wales and presenter Charlie quizzed the Cloverlands trustees about the cars describing the museum as “a wonderful collection with so many memories”.

Museum trustee Bruce Lawson said: “We can’t wait to see the episode featuring the museum. The timing is perfect, as the museum reopens on April 1.

“Charlie was quite taken aback by the rarity of some of the models we have in the museum. For filming, we highlighted six or seven models, some dating to 1911, so we’ll have to wait to see how many are featured in the programme.”

Collections

The lifetime collection began in 1950 when late motoring historian and model maker Gillian Rogers first received two model cars as a birthday present from her father.

Gillian’s models range from four feet wide to the size of a thumbnail and named her collection Cloverlands after a beloved mongrel pup she had raised.

She went on to collect around 2,000 models along with building and commissioning models both large and small.

In 2015, collection was exhibited at Montgomery Institute and although Gillian was aware of the move to Llanfair she sadly died on December last year before in happened.

Ten other collections have since been loaned or given to the museum, including one from Canada, 1,000 Grand Prix and touring cars and a fine display of American cars.

The show will be broadcast on BBC One on March 6 at 11.45am.