Proceeds of the sale of Roger Daltrey's 'Tommy' car boost Teenage Cancer Trust

The legendary lead singer of The Who, Roger Daltrey CBE handed over a cheque for almost £208,945 to the Teenage Cancer Trust’s chairman David Hoare following the sale of a unique bespoke Wraith ‘Inspired by British Music’ car designed by Daltrey and created in collaboration with Mike McInnerney, the artist responsible for the famous album artwork of the The Who’s seminal 1969 album, ‘Tommy’.

Daltrey is honorary patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust that supports young people aged 13-24 diagnosed with cancer, and the driving force behind Teenage Cancer Trust’s annual fundraising concerts at the Royal Albert Hall. He collaborated with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars designers to create two bespoke cars to mark the musical legacy of The Who.

Roger Daltrey CBE commented, “Seven young people are diagnosed with cancer every day in the UK, and these vital funds will help Teenage Cancer Trust take a huge step towards its goal of providing specialist support to every young person with cancer in the UK. This car has become an incredible collectors’ item, and it’s gratifying to know that the proceeds of the sale will support such a worthy cause.”

Torsten Müller-Ötvös, CEO, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, said, “The designers and craftspeople at Rolls-Royce were truly engaged in Roger’s vision to create a car which celebrated The Who’s musical legacy in such a creative, original way. Knowing that the sale of the car would help the charity to support thousands of young people affected by cancer made it all the more worthwhile.”

Rolls-Royce revealed its series of nine remarkable Wraith ‘Inspired by British Music’ cars in March 2017, each created hand-in-hand with some of British music’s most revered rock and vocal artists. Each of the nine cars has now been sold, with all proceeds from the sales donated to charities of the artists’ choosing.

Roger Daltrey worked with Rolls-Royce to create two bespoke vehicles to celebrate the musical legacy of The Who. The first illustrated many of the band’s most famous iconography, such as the ‘bullseye’ logo and some of The Who’s most famous lyrics. The second Wraith was the ‘Tommy’ car.

McInnerney worked with Rolls-Royce’s surface finish experts to create an extraordinary expression of the rock opera’s iconic sleeve design – this truly unique car features the cover artwork of the album applied to the bonnet. Daltrey and McInnerney sought to express other elements of the album artwork throughout the car, with the Lyrical Copper exterior paint finished with a blue coachline of a bird in flight, a reference to the album cover art.

Each of the four headrests were stitched with unique design motifs from the album artwork, while the song ‘Pinball Wizard’ inspired the embroidered design of the rear cabin leather waterfall, featuring a tone-on-tone depiction of a pinball machine with contrasting pinball and flippers. The copper door flights are engraved with lyrics from Tommy Can You Hear Me? and Listening to You / See Me.

A truly individual piece of music memorabilia, the ‘Tommy’ car has been sold to a Rolls-Royce customer.