Star Wars Day! May 4th is when Rolls met Royce, but where?

Leicestershire-based Flying Spares, the world’s largest independent supplier of Rolls-Royce and Bentley parts, is appealing for information on the question of where Charles Stewart Rolls met Frederick Henry Royce in Manchester on 4 May 1904. 

The common belief is that the historic meeting took place at The Midland Hotel on Peter Street. Indeed, there are commemorative plaques to mark the significant event. However, new research has cast doubt on this claim to fame.

Neil Arman, Director of Flying Spares, explained: “I was writing a blog on how people call May 4th Star Wars Day when for us it will always be the day Rolls met Royce and resolved to build the best car in the world. I googled something and stumbled upon an article by Ed Glinert questioning the location. I was intrigued because Rolls met Royce at The Midland, everyone knows that, yet the article was forensic. In particular, the suggestion that Rolls arrived at Piccadilly Station rather than Central Station, half an hour away from The Midland.

“We love a good Rolls-Royce related mystery at Flying Spares. Last year we appealed for information as to the whereabouts of the 1972 Silver Shadow used on the cover of the Oasis album Be Here Now. We discovered that it probably ended up being banger raced. Admittedly, trying to find out about something that happened over 100 years ago, when Edward VII was on the throne, is a much bigger ask. But why not try? The meeting was a pivotal moment in British history, so it’d be amazing to confirm it one way or the other.”

See the “Another Manchester Myth Shattered: Mr Rolls And Mr Royce Probably Didn’t Meet At The Midland Hotel” article by Ed Glinert here:

https://ilovemanchester.com/why-mr-rolls-and-mr-royce-probably-didnt-meet-at-the-midland-hotel

If you have any information on where Rolls met Royce in Manchester on May 4th 1904 please contact Flying Spares on 01455 292949 or sales@flyingspares.co.uk