1,321 Bentleys gather for world record at Salon Prive

More than a thousand modern and heritage Bentleys have set a new record for the largest gathering of Bentleys in history. 1,321 cars arrived at the Bentley Drivers Club Annual Rally, hosted this year at the Salon Prive Concours d'Elegance, together forming a stunning photograph to continue Bentley's year-long centenary celebrations.

Bentleys from across the history of the company were on display, bracketed by EXP2 - the oldest Bentley in the world and the second car built by W.O. Bentley - and the EXP 100 GT, the very latest Bentley concept car that looks forward to the future of luxury mobility in 2035, in its U.K. public debut.

Between these two extraordinary Bentleys were hundreds of cars from all chapters of the company's history.

The 'Cricklewood era' was well represented with scores of original Grand Tourers from the 1920s, joined by the 'Derby Bentleys' of the 1930s. The entire history of Bentley production in Crewe was also on display, from the Mark VI models of 1946 through to the full four-model range of Bentley today - Continental GT, Flying Spur, Bentayga and Mulsanne.

Earlier in the day, Bentley also announced a new Continuation Series for Sir. Tim Birkin's iconic 1929 4½ litre Team Blower - with 12 new cars, matched to the original, to be created by Bentley's bespoking and coachbuilding division, Mulliner. Using a combination of traditional handcraftsmanship skills and the latest digital technology, the 12 Blowers will form the world's first pre-war race car continuation series.

Those Mulliner craftsmanship skills were also on display through the recently restored 1939 Bentley Corniche.

This unique concept car, destroyed at the outbreak of the second world war while waiting to be shipped home, has been painstakingly rebuilt - initially by a team of dedicated enthusiasts, before being completed in-house by Mulliner. The finished car made its global debut at Salon Prive on Thursday morning, driven into the event by Robin Peel, the head of Bentleys heritage fleet - which the car now joins.