Racing along to a double-estimate £2400, this tinplate clockwork Tri-ang Magic Midget made by Line Bros in 1933, led the field at the 450-lot toys sale at Gildings (15% buyer’s premium) in Market Harborough on June 24.

Extracted from Antiques Trade Gazette | Terence Ryle

Assuming a very different profile from the road version of the 1931 Midget – the model from which all the familiar MG two-seaters were developed until the 1950s – it was created to set the record for ‘baby’ cars.

It did so by hitting 120mph in a car driven by Captain GE Eyston, whose photograph appears to the side of the original box which came with the toy along with the key.