MR. MINI: Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issiginos -
(1906-1988)
The son of an exile Greek and a German, he was born on 18th November 1906. At 16 he came with his mother to England and visited the Battersea Polytechnic Institute in London.

Sir Alec Issigonis designed both the Morris Minor and the Morris Mini-Minor (the Mini), clearly demonstrating his time honoured automotive philosophy - to provide a vehicle that carried the greatest payload in the smallest practical space. After the merger of Austin and Morris into BMC, tensions between Austin and Morris staff resulted in Issigonis leaving BMC for Alvis to design a new V8 powered car. Regrettably this car proved too expensive for Alvis to put in production and thus during November 1955 Issigonis returned to BMC and began work on the supremely successful Morris Mini-Minor and 1100.

'One thing that I learnt the hard way - well, not the hard way, the easy way - when you're designing a new car for production, never, never copy the opposition.' -Issigonis.

This belief explains why the Minor and the Mini looked like no other car, as indeed they were not copied or inspired by existing cars. In addition to this policy, the new engineering principles Issigonis incorporated into them ensured that they would look different from their rivals.

Sir Alec Issigonis also designed the suspension of the Morris Eight, and therefore it is hardly surprising that the car was lauded for it's suspension and ride.

On 4 October 1988 he died at the age of 81 years. A fulfilled life found its end, but its most ingenious factory, the MINI continues to carry its signature to the world, unorthodox like its' technical designer who often recorded his ideas on a paper-napkins while eating.