Photos of Mr. Bean With His Iconic Minis in the 1990s

Mr. Bean is a fictional character from the British comedy television programme Mr. Bean, its animated spin-off, and two live-action feature films. He was created by Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis, portrayed by Atkinson, and made his first appearance on television in the pilot episode, which first aired on January 1, 1990.

In the pilot episode of the series, Mr. Bean first appears driving an orange Mini. Immediately one of the series’ running gags is established as Mr. Bean uses his Mini to basically run a Reliant Robin off the road. One of the reasons that a Reliant was chosen to be the car often antagonized by Mr. Bean was Rowan Atkinson’s lack of respect for the car.

Even though his first Mini is orange, some iconic elements are already present on the car, such as the padlock that Mr. Bean uses to lock it. The car doesn’t survive the episode, as it suffers on off-screen crash after Mr. Bean drives it down a dead end. The last we see of it is its tyre bouncing back from the supposed site of the accident.

It’s in the third episode (“The Curse of Mr. Bean”) that the car we most closely associate with Mr. Bean made its debut: a 1977 Leyland Cars Mini 1000 Mark IV in Austin Citron Green, with the bonnet painted matte black, and the number plate SLW 287R. Without going into too much detail, it probably comes as no surprise that throughout shooting, more than one of these Minis were used. Also, some parts of the original orange Mini were transferred to one of these newer green models, namely the steering wheel cover, seats and carpet. 

The Mini’s next appearance in Mr. Bean’s fifth outing, “The Trouble with Mr. Bean” – which was the most popular episode during the series’ original airing – really cemented its iconic status. In this sketch, Mr. Bean has to drive to the dentist, which should be simple enough, but he also has to get dressed and brush his teeth during the drive. What follows is three minutes of classic physical comedy as Mr. Bean gets dressed while sitting in the back seat and driving with his feet and brushing his teeth using the side mirror. 

The next episode also featured a couple of classic Mr. Bean moments, such as the car key sketch, where Mr. Bean showcases how difficult it is to start his car’s engine, by using a number of hidden keys that eventually open the place where he keeps his ignition key. Of course, after all that effort, his car doesn’t start. This is something that reveals the fictional nature of the series, as that would never happen in real life. Later on he uses an ambulance to jump his car, as the paramedics are attending to a man that Mr. Bean has electrocuted. Mr. Bean then drives off as the ambulance fails to start, because of course it does. 

The most iconic role for the Mini is the ninth episode, “Do-It-Yourself Mr. Bean.” In the second act of the episode, Mr. Bean wants to take advantage of a New Year’s Day sale and drives to a department store where he buys tins of paint, brushes, mops, as well as an armchair. He straps the armchair to the roof of his Mini, but discovers that he cannot fit in his car anymore, as it is also full. So Mr. Bean does the only obvious thing – well, obvious to him at least. He places a brick in front of the front wheels, with a string attached. This is to hold the Mini after he releases the handbrake. He uses a tin of paint with a string attached to operate the clutch, then puts the car into gear and gets up on the armchair on top of the car. He controls the wheels with further strings, and uses a mop and a broom tied together, to operate the gas and the brakes. When he is ready to drive off, he pulls the brick out from under the front wheel and off he goes. While everything goes to plan initially, he soon loses control over the acceleration, and crashes into the back of a truck carrying pillows, which stops him in the softest of ways.

Mr. Bean’s Mini has become one of the most recognizable cars in pop culture. Put it into a line-up with other cars and everyone would likely be able to guess who it belongs to. They would also probably be able to recall a time when they laughed hysterically at the hijinks that Mr. Bean committed with his car. And with that kind of recognition, history and character, who knows, we might not have seen the last of this little Mini on the screen.

(via MINI.com)