At Beaulieu’s preview launch of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang 50 years, Lord Montagu and celebrity guest Adrian Hall (who played Jeremy in the film) recreated a scene from the film as they emerged out of the garage in Chitty in the National Motor Museum – while a cast of 30 children from a stage production sang Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. *
Guests included Lionel Whitehead, the head mechanic for Alan Mann Racing which produced all of the Chitty film cars, Alan Mann’s son Henry and Rupert Howes, the nephew of Truly Scrumptious actress Sally Ann Howes.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang 50 years opens to visitors on Saturday (October 20th) and will be on display at Beaulieu until November 2019. The exhibition includes an original screen Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the Humber 8hp driven by Truly Scrumptious, Coggins Garage, the inventive machines of Rowland Emett, a replica of Grandpa Potts’ hut, the Spy Phone, costumes and original film artwork on display for the first time. It tells the story of Chitty from its beginnings as Ian Fleming’s book – and the real-life racing car which inspired it – to Cubby Broccoli’s unique interpretation on film.
* The Ccads Theatre stage production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang will be at the Kings Theatre in Portsmouth from November 1st – 3rd.