Michael Banfield - Lifetime Achievement Award, 2007
Michael has had a lifetime interest in historic commercial vehicles and buses, veteran and even classic cars.
Born in 1936 he was a founding member of the Historic Commercial Vehicle Society in 1957, which went from strength to strength. In 1962 the Society merged with the Vintage Passenger Vehicle Society to become the Historic Commercial Vehicle Club, the largest such society in the country, possibly the World, catering for lorries and buses.
Throughout most of this time Michael has been THE leading light in the Society, having been on the Council of Management since 1960 and Chairman since 1965. In 1993 he was appointed Honorary Vice President for Life and Senior Executive Officer of the Society. He has been fortunate to have the help and support of his wife Susan.
Michael has a large collection of historic vehicles and, in the early days of preservation, it was his vehicles that set the standard for the quality of restoration, particularly in the late 1960s and 1970s, when his buses and lorries made impressive appearances on the Brighton Sea Front each year.
In addition to commercial vehicles, Michael has a number of veteran cars and has been a member of the Veteran Car Club since 1960. He was Secretary and Chairman of the London section of the VCC until that closed, later he was both Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Executive Committee, and he has now been elected as a Board Member.
He has served on the General Committee of FIVA for 21 years, looking after the interests of historic vehicle owners and protecting them from potential un-sympathetic legislation from Brussels. He was a Committee Member of the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs for 12 years and was also a founder member, later Committee Member and Treasurer, for the International Historic Vehicle Organisation.
He is a Liveryman in the Worshipful Company of Carmen, and a Freeman of the City of London – a very impressive life history, and demonstrating his worthiness to be awarded with this Lifetime of Achievement.
For further information about the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain, look here; for the Historic Commercial Vehicle Society, look here; for the Federation Internationale de Vehicules Anciens, look here