camperfanatic

  Beatles tour vans 1960-66... and other famous band-vans An Austin van, similar to this one, also with two-tone pantwork, was owned by the first Beatles manager Alan Williams, and used by them in the UK and on their journey to Hamburg As a freelance writer, author of four books, and historian on the subject of campervans and motorhomes, I also have an avid interest in classic light commercial vehicles/vans of the 50s, 60s and 70s. Another of my interests is music (listening not playing), and in particular the music and bands of the 60s and 70s. I was fortunate to see many great bands play live during those decades, some at the height of their popularity and some much later on the cabaret circuit. My two interests came together after I began to research which tour vans some of the 60s bands had used, The Beatles in particular as I was/am a huge fan, but this did lead me to go on the hunt for info relating to other UK 60s bands, and how and what they used to cover eve...

 Those residents outside of the UK might be unfamiliar with the light commercial van chassis launched in 1952 by Vauxhall in the Britain. 2022 marks the 70th anniversary of a vehicle which would not only change the face of deliveries in the UK,  but would create a new base for a campervan, that would come to be known as the 'Dormobile'. The brainchild of Martin Walter Ltd, based in Folkestone,  the Bedford CA Dormobile would bring the outdoor leisure lifestyle to postwar Britain. It would also alter the face of road transport in the UK as it became a familiar sight in various formats, from basic delivery van, works van, builders van and pickup, mobile shop, gown van, furniture removal van, mobile water bowser, ice cream van and everything in between. The CA was produced at the Vauxhall plant based in Luton, and left the factory by the thousands throughout the 1950s and 60s, until it was replaced by the Bedford CF in 1969. Although Martin Walter Ltd (Dormobile) were by far...