Toy car brand Matchbox unveils tiny model Gold State Coach to mark coronation

Toy car brand Matchbox has recreated the King’s Gold State Coach in miniature to celebrate the coronation.

The tiny diecast model is a 1:64 replica of the 261-year-old carriage which will carry the newly-crowned Charles and Queen Consort in a grand procession back to Buckingham Palace on May 6.

It measures 23cm and features small metal figures of the King and Camilla inside, as well as eight horses – the number needed to pull the four-tonne carriage.

The coach was designed using both traditional and modern, innovative techniques including 3D printing.

Seventy years ago, London-based diecasting business Lesney sold more than one million of its 11.8cm coronation coaches produced in 1952 ahead of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953.

Its sales success enabled Lesney to go on to fund the launch of the Matchbox brand – which has produced more than three billion toy cars to date.

Matchbox creators visited the Royal Mews to take photos of the coach, and viewed hours of archive footage of the giltwood coach, eight Windsor Grey horses and four coachmen to produce the most detailed replica to date.

The design process took four months, blending old design practices and new ones including 3D scanners to capture the form of the horses and riders from the original Lesney model and prototype parts made using 3D printing.

It is the fourth version of the carriage to be made, and has rolling wheels with a front turning axle and, for the first time, windows.

Designers also took the opportunity to correct errors in the original 1952 model – the tritons on the front of the coach are now accurately depicted as blowing horns, while the painted side panels have extra decorations and the roof now has the three cherubs.

Giles Chapman, author of Britain’s Toy Car Wars, said of the original coach: “It was the forerunner to the phenomenally successful Matchbox 1-75 series launched in 1953 that put toy cars and trucks into the eager hands of all children, not just those lucky enough to have wealthy parents.

“The little coach was the blockbuster product that started it all.”

The 2023 Matchbox Gold State Coach is available made to order via mattelcreations.com until May 18, priced at £60.