David Slingsby Ogle (1921''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' – 25 May 1962) was a British industrial and

car designer Automotive design is the process of developing the appearance (and to some extent the ergonomics) of motor vehicles, including automobiles, motorcycles, trucks, buses, coaches, and vans. The functional design and development of a modern motor ...

. He founded the design consultancy company

Ogle Design Ogle Design is a British design consultancy company founded in 1954 by David Ogle and based in Letchworth, Hertfordshire. History * 1954 Ogle Design was founded and produced many successful designs of industrial and household products. * 1959 ...

in 1954. He was educated at

Rugby School Rugby School is a Public school (United Kingdom), private boarding school for pupils aged 13–18, located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire in England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independ ...

and briefly studied law at

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

. In 1940 he joined the

Fleet Air Arm The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is the naval aviation component of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy (RN). The FAA is one of five :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, RN fighting arms. it is a primarily helicopter force, though also operating the Lockhee ...

. He flew the

Supermarine Seafire The Supermarine Seafire is a naval version of the Supermarine Spitfire fighter adapted for operation from aircraft carriers. It was analogous in concept to the Hawker Hurricane variants#Sea Hurricanes, Hawker Sea Hurricane, a navalised aircraft ...

in operations in North Africa, the Mediterranean, and in the south of France. He rose to the rank of Lt Commander and was awarded the DSC and the MBE. Bush TR82 Halogen Highlight

At the conclusion of the war he attended the

Central School of Art and Design The Central School of Art and Design was a school of fine and applied arts in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1896 by the London County Council as the Central School of Arts and Crafts. ...

in London, studying industrial design. He subsequently joined

Murphy Radio Murphy Radio was a British manufacturer of radios and televisions based in Welwyn Garden City, England. Murphy Radio was founded in 1929 by Frank Murphy and E.J. Power as a volume manufacturer of home radio sets. Its factories were in the He ...

. He left Murphy in 1948 to join Bush Radio. It was while at Bush that he was responsible for the iconic design of the TR82 transistor radio. He went on to design the Ogle SX1000 based on the Mini. Sixty-nine cars were made before David Ogle's death. He also designed the

Reliant Scimitar The Reliant Scimitar name was used for a series of sports car models produced by British car manufacturer Reliant between 1964 and 1986. During its 22-year production it evolved from a coupe (GT) into a sports estate (GTE), with a convertible va ...

. Ogle died in an automobile accident on 25 May 1962, while driving an Ogle Mini GT sports car on the way to Brands Hatch race circuit where he was going to demonstrate the vehicle. He was on the A1 highway at Digswell Hill, Welwyn, Hertfordshire and travelling at when he collided with a van and the car burst into flames.

Honours and awards

*27 March 1945 – For distinguished service and gallantry during the invasion of the South of France, the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) to Temporary Lieutenant (A) David Slingsby Ogle, RNVR (Reigate). *13 June 1946 – To be a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

– Lieutenant (A) Davide Slingsby Ogle, DSC, RNVR.

References

1921 births 1962 deaths People educated at Rugby School Alumni of the University of Oxford British World War II pilots British automobile designers Members of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Fleet Air Arm aviators Road incident deaths in England British industrial designers Alumni of the Central School of Art and Design Fleet Air Arm personnel of World War II {{Automobile-bio-stub