Recently, under the unblinking eye of Nambulc, Ringmaster Extraordinaire… and in front of hundreds of eager fans, the new MINI Clubman was finally unveiled in the curious surroundings of The House of Oddities, located in the midst of Dublin’s rejuvenated city quays.
The arrival of the new MINI Clubman has been keenly anticipated since the concept was first shown in 2005. Also referred to as The Other MINI, it is a MINI for a new generation. It oozes the personality of its MINI cousin but with a deliciously individual twist. The swinging ‘60s had a hand in the Clubman development. The new car takes inspiration and styling cues from the Morris Mini Traveller, Austin Mini Countryman and the Mini Clubman Estate. The new MINI Clubman nevertheless stays true to the successful, modern MINI design language.
With a modus operandi of ‘Fun needs space…’ and ‘Predictable is boring…’ the event to mark the arrival of The Other MINI certainly espoused those traits. The House of Oddities turned the traditional car launch inside out, back to front and put it firmly back onto a whole new level.
In a warehouse transformed into a carnival of the unusual, MINI Clubman made its debut under the watchful eye of Nambluc, the Ringmaster and a cohort comprising the Animal Trainer, the Young Knife Thrower Apprentice, the Clairvoyant, the Human Cannonball & the Charlatan. Also in attendance were actor Dave Coffey, TV presenter Jenny Buckley, Benoit Bringer and Avila Lipsett, Sarah Heaney and BMW MD Sean Green, Wes Quirke and designer Graham Cruz.
This unconventional, old-style travelling circus fused with avant-garde theatre performance art known as The House of Oddities is the natural home of the MINI Clubman. Special guests, also making their Irish debut, included Lucifire - the internationally renowned purveyor of the finest quality burlesque pyrotica - bringing her feisty & fiery abilities to the evening’s proceedings and Cirq-U - the death-defying aerial duo - performing physical theatre to the delight of the 500 invited guests.
All these elements combined to ensure that the MINI Clubman’s arrival in Ireland was a night that no one will forget.
