Unique Rolls-Royce Phantom to dazzle at Concours of Elegance 2025

By Ryan Standen

| 28 Jul 2025

Classic & Sports Car – Unique Rolls-Royce Phantom to dazzle at Concours of Elegance 2025

A 1926 Rolls-Royce Phantom I, known as The Phantom of Love, has joined this summer’s Concours of Elegance line-up.

The extravagant Rolls-Royce will be one of 60 classic cars in contention for the Best in Show trophy at Hampton Court Palace from 5-7 September 2025.

And you can be there for less. Classic & Sports Car readers get 20% off by using the promotional code CSC25 when you click here to buy your tickets.

Plus, if you’re travelling to Concours of Elegance in a pre-1990 classic, make use of the Classic & Sports Car car park – enter the code PRE1990 to order your parking pass.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom I’s cabin was inspired by Rococo, a style that was popular in 18th-century France

The one-off, 99-year-old car was commissioned by Clarence Gasque, the UK financial director for Woolworth shops, as a gift for his wife, Maude, an heiress to the retail company.

The businessman approached Mr J H Barnett of Wolverhampton-based Charles Clark & Son Ltd to build the money-no-object Rolls-Royce.

Gasque, who was a fan of French furniture, provided a loose brief that was open to interpretation, except the car had to be inspired by Gallic style.

Barnett visited London’s Victoria and Albert Museum for inspiration.

The Phantom of Love was built by Charles Clark & Son Ltd in Wolverhampton, in the UK

The final design was influenced by a sedan chair – a one-person carriage used to carry wealthy people in the 17th and 18th centuries – once used by Marie Antoinette, which Barnett saw at the V&A.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom I was fitted with a Rococo-style interior, including tapestries from Aubusson in France.

There are also 18th-century English enamel boxes, silver bon bon dishes, a French ormolu clock and porcelain vases with enamel flowers.

This unique Rolls-Royce Phantom I was inspired by a trip to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London

The finished Rolls-Royce Phantom I was delivered in mid-1927, but Clarence Gasque died in October 1928.

Maude, who dedicated much of her life to promoting vegetarianism and animal welfare, used the car until 1937, when she put it into storage.

Since then, it’s been part of classic car collections in the UK, USA and Japan, and exhibited at Pebble Beach, Rétromobile and elsewhere.

This year, it will be displayed outside the Grade I-listed Hampton Court Palace at Concours of Elegance, which takes place from 5-7 September.

The Phantom of Love is one of the most famous 1920s Rolls-Royce cars

The Rolls-Royce ‘Phantom of Love’ will be one of 500-plus classic cars on display across the weekend.

It will join one of about 40 surviving Ligier JS2s, a celebration of the Lotus Esprit at 50, the brand-new Restoration Showcase in partnership with Classic & Sports Car and much more.

And don’t forget, Classic & Sports Car readers can get 20% off tickets by using the promotional code CSC25 at the checkout, here, and we have parking for pre-1990 classics, too, so remember to enter the code PRE1990 to order your pass for the dedicated Classic & Sports Car car park.

Both the ticket offer and the parking passes are limited, and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Images: Tim Scott/Concours of Elegance

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