‘It had to be done!’ – Ace Cafe’s 80th at the Silverstone Classic
London’s famous Ace Cafe had a joint birthday with the home of the British Grand Prix over the Silverstone Classic weekend. The Ace’s owner, Mark Wilsmore, who revived it as a venue in 1997, told
Classic Car Weekly that both instutions had plenty in common: ‘It’s our 80th and their 70th. Silverstone is a world-famous circuit, and we have a worldwide audence. It was obvious to us both; it had to be done. There are many parallels – there are vehicles of all kinds at Silverstone, classic cars and motorcycles alike, many of which come to visit us throughtout the year. The key thing that unites the Ace and Silverstone is speed, in all its forms.’
Silverstone Classic’s organisers recreated a circa 1948 pitlane to the delight of visitors.
The Ace, which opened in 1938 as a transport cafe, suffered a direct hit during World War Two, but was rebuilt with a greater purpose after hostilities ended.
History tends to get caught up in the carnage created at the Ace by speedaddicted bikers, but Mark said: ‘We tend to forget that the Ace had a full suite of services before the War – the Ace service station (home to one of the first automatic car washes in the capital), the Ace Motor Showroom (official agent for brands such as Austin, Daimler, Standard and Triumph), an Ace filling station (with eight pumps) and a post-war race car tuning shop.’
At nearby Copse corner, the Historic Lotus Register continued the observance of Lotus’ 70-year history. Fans may not be aware of how the Ace site featured in the beginnings of one of Britain’s best-loved car marques. Mark said: ‘Famous car names and the Ace go hand in hand. My favourite story was that a young mechanic who worked at the service station was subsequently caught moonlighting; he later opened a garage near to the cafe. That firm came to be known as Lotus, and the mechanic, of course, was Colin Chapman.’