Land Rover Defender... End Of The Road For An Icon

final mile for the Land Rover Defender,  iconic vehicle, loved by drivers from the Queen to James Bond, ceases production on Friday

It is best known as a rugged, durable car that can wade through mud, floods or desert sand. But the Land Rover Defender - popularized by the Royals, film-makers and even football managers - will cease production on Friday. 

The classic model, today called the Defender, has become the most recognizable off-road car since it first appeared in 1948.

Motor enthusiasts have lamented the end of an era, calling it the 'death of an icon'.   

  ..down memory lane.
The venerable icon has been pressed into service on different terrains around the world

 

 Photo: PA
The Queen driving herself in a Land Rover, in January 2000, to the stables on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk 

 Photo: PA

Queen Elizabeth riding in a Land Rover with the Duke of Edinburgh, in September 1953, reviewing 72,000 ex service men and women

 

 Photo: PA
A 1950 Series 1 Land Rover on show at the Royal Horticultural Hall in central London - the Discovery will cease production on Friday

 

Photo: PA

 Queen Elizabeth II, with her sons Prince Andrew (left) and Prince Edward waiting for Princess Anne's arrival in the Cross-Country event of the Windsor Horse Trials in April, 1972 - the Land Rover Discovery will cease production on Friday

Photo: PA
Queen Elizabeth II riding in a Land Rover with the Duke of Edinburgh, as they pass down the lines of Venom fighter planes as they inspect No. 151 Squadron during their visit to RAF Leuchars, Fife, Scotland, in June 1957

British soldiers used the classic car to carry out patrols on the streets of Belfast during the Troubles. The allied forces used during World War II

The vehicles were used by Coalition Forces during conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan because of their ability to overcome large areas of sand.   

Bob Paisley and Matt Busby - the celebrated former Liverpool and Manchester United managers - paraded around Wembley Stadium in a Land Rover before the 1983 Charity Shield.

A number of film-makers have also chosen Land Rovers to make their action sequences as exciting as possible.

Land Rover Defenders were used in a car chase during the opening sequence of 2012 James Bond movie Skyfall.

The vehicles also featured in Angelina Jolie's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in 2001 and the 2014 sci-fi adventure Edge of Tomorrow, starring Tom Cruise.

Photo: PA
The Webb Ellis trophy on board a Land Rover at Eastbourne prior to the start of the Rugby World Cup last September

 

 Photo: PA
The Land Rover in a blizzard, in April 1963, helping other motorists in difficulties - it is an iconic and much-loved British vehicle

Photo: PA
Members of the Brigade Recce Force, in the northern Kuwaiti desert, in a Land Rover, pictured in March 2003 

 

 Photo: remlr

 Land Rover: Down under

Photo: PA
A military Land Rover struggling though a flooded area at Safwan, near the Kuwaiti border in Iraq, in January 2006

Photo: PA

Queen Elizabeth II riding in a Land Rover with Prince Philip, through the World Scout Jubilee Jamboree camp in Sutton Park, Warwickshire

Photo: PA
A young boy at the wheel of scale model of a Land Rover in Northampton, in July 1998 - the car has become iconic across the world 

Photo: PA
It has become synonymous with the Royals since 1948 - here, Zara Phillips is pictured unveiling a special edition Land Rover Defender

Photo: pinterest
 Land Rover Defender circa 1948

 

Photo: morethanmore

 Land Rover Defender pressed into cross country service

Photo: automobilemag
 Land Rover Defender fording water
Photo: PA
Prince Charles, sitting in a 1948 open Land Rover, during a visit to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the car in May 2008

Photo: PA
The Marquess of Bath, backed by an armed warden, watching a lion at his game reserve at his ancestral Wiltshire home in Longleat

Photo: PA
The Queen, who popularised the Land Rover, with Prince Philip at a children's rally in Melbourne in March 1977

Photo: PA
A Land Rover piles through the mire at Salisbury Plain, in Wiltshire, during a live firing demonstration in October 2006

Photo: PA
The 40th Regiment The Royal Artillery in a Land Rover during a patrol in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan, in August 2009

Photo: PA
The Land Rover was used to help those affected by the floods in December - pictured here is Margaret McCraken, 79, in Carlisle 

 

 

Photo: PA
A Land Rover battling through the flood waters in Cumbria last December - it is perhaps best known for its rugged durability 

Courtesy: Mirror