Sir William Lyons – Wapenbury Hall, Near Leamington Spa.

William Lyons was born on 4 September 1901, in Blackpool.
He lived with his parents at 24 King Edward Avenue in Blackpool and marketed his first Swallow motorcycle sidecar with William Walmsley in 1922 who was a few years older than William Lyons.

In September 1928, Lyons and Walmsley move to Coventry and started to produce an Austin Seven chassised Car, the Swallow two-seater.

In 1931 the new Standard Motor Company Chassis with a 16hp engine became the SS two-seater coupé.

Harry Weslake, who had worked on Sunbeam engines to produce more power and was involved with the Bentley Le Mans cars, was employed by William Lyons to develop the Standard engine unit to give more power.  Weslake then designed a new overhead-valve cylinder head.

By 1935 the new four-door saloon car was announced the Jaguar SS.

After WW2 the name was changed from SS Cars to Jaguar Cars Ltd.

In 1948 at the London Motor Show at Earls Court, the Jaguar XK120 was shown with the new XK six-cylinder engine.

1961 Jaguar introduced the exceptional E-Type Roadster

Sir William Lyons retired from Jaguar to Wapenbury Hall, in Wapenbury nr Leamington Spa.
Before he retired he did, along with another who lived in Leamington helped design the XJS and XJ140.

Sir William Lyons died on 8 Feb 1985 (aged 83)

He is buried in St John the Baptist Churchyard, Wappenbury, near Leamington Spa.