This week Land Rover will mark its 65th anniversary with a celebration at Packington Estate near Solihull, which was the testing ground for the original 1947-48 Land Rover prototypes through to the Range Rover development vehicles of the late 1960s and early 70s.
In a nod to the company's rich heritage of military vehicles, a cake in the shape of the first Series 1 Land Rover, HUE 166 (nicknamed, inevitably, 'Huey') will be flown in by a member of the 'Black Cats' Royal Navy display team in a Lynx helicopter.
The real HUE 166 will also be on display, along with more than 130 Land Rovers representing key milestones in the company's history and demonstrating their legendary versatility, the key to Land Rover's success ever since Maurice Wilks first sketched the layout of his go-anywhere 'tractor' in the sand at Packington.
Emergency service, military, expedition, royal and concept vehicles will be lined up alongside the current range - the Defender, Discovery, Freelander, Range Rover, Range Rover Sport and Evoque - as well as the new Electric Defender research vehicle and the world's first nine-speed transmission for a passenger car.
SPECIAL-EDITION DEFENDER
And, of course, there will be an special-edition model to mark the occasion - the LXV (that's 65 in Roman numerals, Cyril), of which just 65 will be available in the UK but none, unfortunately, in South Africa.
The Defender evolved from the original Land Rover in 1990 and this iconic family of utility vehicles - Land Rover Series I, II, III and Defender - has now sold more than two million.
The LXV is based on the standard Defender 90 Hard Top, with a 2.2-litre diesel engine rated for 90kW at 3500rpm and 360Nm at 2000rpm, and a six-speed manual transmission.
It will be available in either black or white with contrasting grey roof, roof, grille headlight surrounds and fascia, special 16” Sawtooth alloy rims and LXV badging, along with an optional union jack at the rear.
The full-leather seats have LXV-embossed front head restraints with special orange contrast stitching on the seats, steering wheel and centre storage compartment,
Pricing in the UK will start from £28 765 (R404 000).