PREVIEW

Rolls-Royce has marked 100 years of its flagship Phantom model with a tribute to one of rock music’s most enduring myths - the night The Who’s drummer Keith Moon allegedly drove a Rolls-Royce into a hotel swimming pool.

The story, said to have taken place at the Holiday Inn in Flint, Michigan, on Moon’s 21st birthday in 1967. Accounts of what really happened differ: Moon himself later insisted it was a Lincoln Continental belonging to another guest, while others claimed no car entered the pool at all.

Yet the legend has proved so irresistible Rolls-Royce have now recreated it at Plymouth’s Tinside Lido, submerging a disused Phantom prototype in the Art Deco pool overlooking the English Channel.

The location was chosen for its musical connections: it appeared in a 1967 Beatles photograph taken during filming for Magical Mystery Tour, the same year John Lennon revealed his hand-painted yellow Phantom V.

Chris Brownridge, Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, said: “For a century, Phantom has been chosen by some of the most creative and influential figures in music. The connection between Rolls-Royce and musicians is as enduring as it is extraordinary.”

Since the early days of jazz and swing, Rolls-Royce has been closely linked to the music world. Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ravi Shankar, Edith Piaf and Sam Cooke were among those to embrace the marque. While the Phantom has been a favourite of stars including Liberace, Elvis Presley, Elton John, John Lennon and Pharrell Williams.