This Vintage Polished Chrome Camper Is One Of The Most Ridiculous RVs Of All Time

I cannot believe I’m saying this, but the camper at the top of your screen right now is not a custom build. Yes, it looks like an Airstream that went to clown school, and, somehow, it was really built to be as flamboyant as possible. This is the Vickers Morecambe, and it’s one of the rarest, weirdest, most ridiculous campers you’ll ever see, with miles of blinding chrome and mirrors inside and outside. It even has a working fireplace just to cap off the craziness.

One of the coolest things about RV history is that, no matter how deep you dig, you will always find something new. RVs have been around for well over a century now, and countless companies have come and gone without leaving even so much of a breadcrumb to trace their history. Yet, just like how some people will preserve one of the sole examples of a car that disappeared decades ago, there are people who keep campers around decades after they’ve become orphans.

This 1950s-era Vickers Morecambe caravan is currently listed at Car & Classic in an auction in the United Kingdom that is likely to have ended by the time that you read this. Normally, a camper like this would be old news to me, because I love writing about rigs that you can buy right now or perhaps find later on. However, the sheer level of crazy cannot be ignored here. Sadly, only a few of these were ever built, anyway, so who knows when you’ll ever see another.

Bombastic By Design

Something that I am extremely fascinated by is the fact that I have found only morsels of information about the Vickers Morecambe. The primary source I’m using for this piece is the Car & Classic listing itself, which isn’t a frequent occurrence for me. Here’s what the listing says:

By all accounts, it could be said that Harry Vickers was a character. Starting off as a Trapeze Artist, the Bolton-born eccentric briefly went into exhibiting himself as the world’s strongest man, sold patent medicines in Lancashire, started getting into chromework and then found a site in Morecambe following the Second World War, which is where he started building his caravans and trailers.

These were the best-of-the-best. A Vickers was a bit like the Rolls-Royce of the Caravan world. They were bigger, roomier, loaded with details and often covered in rich, bright chrome. It was often said that if you could pay for it, the Vickers Caravan Workshop could do it, and to this day one of the legendary Westmorland Caravans is bound to garner plenty of attention. Larger than an Airstream of the same era, it’s really inside these remarkable trailers that true gauche glory comes into play.

Curvy, patterned units and a fireplace sit alongside fully spec’d out stoves and tiled floors, often with frosted and etched glass motifs across the board. It was a very glamorous place to be, and proved remarkably comfortable for travelling showmen who often made it their main home with pride. To this day, it’s a very handsomely specified home-on-wheels.

According to the books, Travellers through Time: A Gypsy History, and Beneath The Blue Sky: 40 Years Of The Gypsy Traveller Life, the caravans of Vickers were considered to be flagship products with no expense spared to make the wildest campers on the planet. The trailers were each custom-built to their owners’ exacting specifications, no matter how bombastic.

These books note that these campers, as well as trailers like the Westmorland Star, the Lunedale, the Bluebird, and the Berkeley, were beloved among wealthier Romany people. Today, if you perform a web search for Vickers caravans and look past the results for articles about this trailer, you’ll find Facebook groups of Romany people adoring these old-school caravans. Click this link and read the comments; you’ll find stories of folks recalling how much of a joy it was to keep these campers all polished up and shiny.

Sadly, I have not found much else about Vickers. The Internet Archive has little information. The earliest Vickers caravans that I’ve found were from the early 1950s, and the latest were from the 1970s. It’s also unclear, at least to me, how many models Vickers was associated with. For example, I’ve seen some people say that the equally vivid Westmorland Caravan is a Harry Vickers creation, but I’ve also seen some people say that the Westmorland was built by someone named Alan Dent.

This 1950s Vickers Morecambe

Sadly, my lack of additional information about Vickers means that the history section of this post will be short. But, good news, that means we can bask in the insanity of the Vickers Morecambe.

The Cars & Classic listing gives us a small story about this trailer:

This fine example requires some chassis repairs and a little bit of restoration work, but the handsome period kitsch is all present and correct, and will no doubt prove a very handsome example when finished. It’s recently been part of a very successful holiday let in a circus-themed barn, has been used repeatedly in filming and for wedding photoshoots, and is now being sold due to much-deserved retirement. We think it’ll be a very viable business for the lucky buyer!

The listing states that, yes, what you’re looking at here is very original. This is not a trailer that someone tacked a bunch of bits onto. Well, I suppose someone did tack a bunch of bits on it, but that happened when it was built back in the 1950s.

The exact year of the trailer is not known, but it is believed to be either in its 70s or close to it. Given its age, it’s amazing that the chrome inside and outside of this trailer is in such great condition, with only light patina. It gets even cooler from there. The listing states that the interior of the trailer is full of intricate glasswork and mirrors. In terms of features, you’re looking at vinyl bench seats, an electrical system, storage spaces, and yep, a tiled fireplace. Apparently, much of this is original, including the lighting.

The seller says that it weighs around three metric tons, or 6,613 pounds, but does not mention anything about length, interior height, or any bathroom facilities. Based on what I could find, a bathroom, or even a kitchen, might be in a different trailer. In that way, this isn’t your typical caravan or travel trailer; it’s supposed to sort of be part of a convoy.

Sadly, the trailer is not in perfect shape. It’s noted that the chassis of the trailer needs repair and that there are corroded elements that should be fixed before the trailer is put into service again. Apparently, the trailer needs this work in part because it has not been moved in a long time.

More Is More

Despite the needed work, I’m going to call this camper a total gem no matter what price it lands on. It’s believed that only a handful of these have survived into the modern day. Thankfully, the Beamish Museum did save one of these, but still, these are so rare that not even I knew that they existed. I have found only two for sale, the camper that you’re reading about right now, and a model from the 1970s that doesn’t have as much chrome as this one has.

As of writing, the 1950s Vickers camper is at £20,000 ($26,971) and will sell today. If you miss out on it, you can pick up the 1970s version that’s also for sale for £16,000 ($21,576). Either of these trailers can be imported to America.

I will be the first to recognize that these trailers won’t be for everyone. I mean, I could not imagine what it would be like to shine a set of headlights on this bad boy. The interior must also get interesting on a sunny day. But you know what? I don’t care, and I’m sure the buyer won’t, either. This camper is absolutely silly, and I love it. RV manufacturers, if you’re reading this, make campers as weird and as fun as a Vickers Morecambe!