Liverpool & Bootle Constabulary recruitment display
Caption
Officers viewing a Liverpool & Bootle Constabulary recruitment display featuring several Police Minis among photographs of operational police work.
Source & rights
Rights / permissionLiverpool City Police
Open original source ↗1967 Liverpool police fleet press line-up
Caption
An elevated 1967 view of Liverpool’s police fleet assembled with Austin Mini Cooper S cars, Ford Anglias, police motorcycles and uniformed officers.
Commentary
A remarkable overhead portrait of the wider Liverpool police vehicle fleet in 1967. Austin Mini Cooper S cars form a major part of the formation, alongside Ford Anglia police cars, rows of police motorcycles and uniformed officers. The elevated viewpoint provides an unusually useful comparison of the different vehicle types and their roof mounted equipment. Two of the nearest front facing Minis appear to carry registrations KKD 442E and KKD 430E, although the resolution of the surviving image means these readings should presently be treated as probable rather than confirmed.
Source & rights
Rights / permissionLiverpool City Police
Open original source ↗Morris Mini Cooper S MkII in a street traffic scene
Caption
A Morris Mini Cooper S MkII with twin fuel tanks and roof mounted police equipment, photographed in a busy street scene with no large side POLICE markings visible.
Commentary
A particularly valuable operational photograph because the Morris Mini Cooper S MkII is shown within a much wider street scene rather than posed for the camera. Its twin fuel fillers are clearly visible, providing strong visual confirmation of Cooper S specification. The car carries roof-mounted police equipment, but unlike the more familiar marked fleet photographs, no large POLICE lettering is visible on the side shown here. A police motorcycle stands alongside it while numerous officers work around a laden lorry and other vehicles. The surrounding shops, pedestrians and business signs including The Regent School of Motoring.
Source & rights
Rights / permissionLiverpool City Police
Open original source ↗OKD 700F in police service
Caption
Morris Mini Cooper S MkII OKD 700F in a clear side portrait showing its POLICE markings, roof sign, warning equipment and radio aerial.
Commentary
One of the archives most useful individual reference photographs. OKD 700F is shown unobstructed from the front and side, making the Morris MkII front treatment, registration, large POLICE lettering, wheels and overall stance particularly clear. The roof installation is exceptionally well recorded: a forward facing POLICE panel sits beneath a raised warning beacon, with air horns mounted to either side, while a tall whip aerial is separately visible on the roof. Taken together, these details make the photograph especially valuable when researching the radio and warning equipment fitted to the 1968 fleet.
Source & rights
Rights / permissionLiverpool City Police
Open original source ↗Austin Mini Cooper S MkI in police service
Caption
An unidentified Austin Mini Cooper S MkI photographed on duty, showing its Austin front treatment, Cooper S wheels and roof-mounted police equipment.
Commentary
A useful period view of an unidentified Austin Mini Cooper S MkI in an urban Liverpool streetscape. The Austin front treatment and Cooper S wheel specification help establish the car’s identity even though the registration is not sufficiently clear to connect it confidently with one of the known KKD cars. Large POLICE lettering dominates the side of the car, while the roof mounted sign and associated warning equipment are clearly visible. Buildings, street furniture and prominent painted lettering on the premises behind the car offer potential clues for identifying the location through further research.
Source & rights
Rights / permissionLiverpool City Police
Open original source ↗KKD 427E in police service
Caption
Austin Mini Cooper S MkI KKD 427E photographed in service, showing its large POLICE lettering, roof-mounted police equipment and additional front lamps.
Commentary
A clear period study of KKD 427E and one of the strongest surviving references for the appearance of Liverpool’s Austin Mini Cooper S MkI fleet. The three quarter view records the Austin MkI front, registration and large side POLICE lettering particularly well. On the roof, the POLICE board is flanked by the air horns, with the overall roof installation already closely resembling that seen on the later Morris MkII cars. The most obvious visual difference here is the additional lamps mounted at the front of the car.
Source & rights
Rights / permissionLiverpool City Police
Open original source ↗KKD 435E in service at Bootle
Caption
Austin Mini Cooper S MkI KKD 435E pictured at Bootle behind a Ford Anglia police car, showing its rear POLICE/STOP roof board and rear quarter aerial.
Commentary
An exceptionally useful period streetscape showing KKD 435E as part of the wider police vehicle fleet rather than in isolation. The Mini is parked behind a Ford Anglia police car beside two uniformed officers and a prominent County Borough of Bootle “DRIVE WITH CARE” sign. KKD 435E’s registration, large side POLICE lettering and rear facing POLICE/STOP roof board are clearly recorded. Of particular interest is the aerial mounted on the drivers side rear quarter above the tail lamp. The same view also shows no second fuel filler on that side, indicating that KKD 435E was photographed here without the twin tank arrangement associated with many Cooper S cars suggesting that 1967 cars were ordered without twin tanks. A route 39 double-decker bus and the surrounding streetscape add further contemporary context to the photograph.
1968 OKD fleet side line-up with officers
Caption
A long side view of Liverpool & Bootle Constabulary’s 1968 Morris Mini Cooper S fleet, with officers positioned along the line of cars.
Commentary
One of the archives best photographs for studying the OKD cars as a fleet. The repeated side on view shows the positioning and scale of the large POLICE lettering, wheel and hubcap treatment and roof mounted equipment across a substantial line of Morris Mini Cooper S MkII cars. Uniformed officers stand alongside several vehicles, while the cobbled surface, fencing and terraced housing retain the surroundings in which the fleet was photographed. Although registrations are not readily readable from this angle, the image is especially useful for comparing the consistency of equipment and presentation from car to car.
1968 OKD fleet front line-up
Caption
Morris Mini Cooper S MkII cars from the 1968 OKD fleet lined up with officers, with several registrations clearly readable.
Commentary
This is the archives strongest photograph for identifying individual cars within the 1968 OKD fleet. OKD 700F is prominent in the foreground, followed by OKD 692F and OKD 689F, with further cars continuing along the line. The front three quarter angle records the Morris MkII grille treatment as well as the repeated roof mounted POLICE boards and warning equipment. The officers positioned with the cars and the uniform presentation of the line give the photograph the character of a formal fleet image while also providing valuable evidence for comparing individual registrations and equipment installations.
Commentary
An unusual piece of contemporary evidence showing how the Police Mini formed part of the forces public image as well as its operational fleet. Uniformed officers are pictured studying a large recruitment display headed “Join the Liverpool Bootle Police” and “GET IN ON THE ACTION”, directing applicants to the Recruiting Officer at Police Headquarters, Hope Street, Liverpool. Several Minis appear within the photographic montage. Of particular interest, the Minis shown here do not appear to carry the large side POLICE lettering familiar from many other fleet photographs. This echoes another surviving period photograph of a twin tank Morris Mini Cooper S MkII carrying police equipment but no visible side POLICE markings, raising the possibility that these recruitment images also record MkII era cars or, a less conspicuously marked configuration. The small size of the photographs within the poster prevents a firm model identification, so this remains an important research lead rather than a confirmed identification.