We are sad to report the death of John Harold Haynes (1956 M), the entrepreneur and creator of the Haynes Manual, founder of Haynes Publishing Group PLC and the Haynes International Motor Museum. The following was included as his obituary on the Haynes website.

John Harold Haynes was born on 25th March 1938 to Harold and Violette Haynes in Ceylon, where his father was the manager of a tea plantation.  From an early age, John had a passion for cars, and as a child he loved nothing more than riding around the plantation with his father in their Morris 8 saloon. 

At the age of 12 he moved to the UK with his brother David, to attend Sutton Valence School as a boarder in St Margaret’s.  It was at School that John’s flair for art and his entrepreneurial spirit developed and flourished.  He persuaded his Housemaster to allow him to miss Rugby and instead spend his time converting an Austin 7 into a lightweight sporty Austin 7 ‘Special’.  He eventually sold the car, making a reasonable profit, and owing to the immense interest it received (over 150 replies to the advert) he decided to produce a booklet showing other enthusiasts how he’d made it. He published a booklet entitled Building A ‘750’ Special; the first print run of 250 copies sold out in 10 days.

After leaving the School, John joined the Royal Air Force to do his National Service. His logistical role taught him business management skills, while enabling him to pursue his passion for motor racing and publishing in his spare time.  

It was whilst in the RAF that ‘Johnny’ met Annette and they were soon married.  On his way to their wedding, he stopped to buy Annette a second hand IBM Proportional Space Typewriter as her wedding present. Although perhaps not the most romantic of gifts, Annette was delighted with his practical choice, setting the stage for a bright future together.

In 1965, John was posted to Aden and it was there that he created the first Haynes Manual.  An RAF colleague had bought a ‘Frogeye’ Sprite, which was in poor condition and he asked John to help him rebuild it. John agreed, and quickly realised that the official factory manual was not designed to help the average car owner. He bought a camera and captured the process of dismantling and rebuilding the engine. The use of step-by-step photo sequences linked to exploded diagrams became the trusted hallmark of Haynes Manuals. The first Haynes Manual, for the Austin Healey Sprite, was published  in 1966, and the first print run of 3,000 sold out in less than three months. To date over 200 million Haynes Manuals have been sold worldwide.

The success of his publishing business culminated in the Haynes Publishing Group PLC floating on the London Stock Exchange in 1979.  In 1995 John was awarded an OBE for services to publishing, and in 2005 The Open University presented him with the honorary degree of Master of the University.

John’s publishing success meant that he was able to enjoy his passion for cars, and he became a prolific collector. In 1985 he founded the Haynes International Motor Museum in Sparkford, Somerset as an educational charitable trust. With over 400 vehicles now housed at the site, the museum attracts large numbers of visitors each year. The School and OSA are especially grateful to John for allowing us to host two successful reunions at the museum in recent years.