Story reel
Margot introduces the story
Behind the Rolls-Royce mascot is a story of forbidden love and a German torpedo. Watch Margot Dorée open The Woman on the Bonnet.
Jump to a moment
Full narration
I’m Margot Dorée, author of The Woman on the Bonnet. Behind the Rolls-Royce mascot is a story of forbidden love and a German torpedo. Eleanor Thornton was the secret lover of John Montagu, a married British aristocrat. Their world was motor racing, grand houses, and a love they had to hide. Charles Sykes made The Whisper for Montagu: a woman holding a finger to her lips. It came before the famous Spirit of Ecstasy. Then, in 1915, a German submarine torpedoed the Persia with both lovers aboard. Montagu survived. Eleanor was lost. Discover the woman behind the legend in The Woman on the Bonnet.
Some story scenes are dramatizations. The Whisper and Spirit of Ecstasy appear as separate objects. This novel is independent and is not affiliated with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited.