c. 1930 Cigarette Card "The 'Tiger'"

c. 1930 Cigarette Card "The 'Tiger'" is a vintage Cigarette Cards artifact by W.D. & H.O. Wills (Issued by The Imperial Tobacco Co. of Great Britain & Ireland, Ltd.) from 1930, preserved in The Record Institute Ephemera Archive.

Category: Cigarette Cards

Brand: W.D. & H.O. Wills (Issued by The Imperial Tobacco Co. of Great Britain & Ireland, Ltd.)

Year: 1930

Rarity Class: B

Last updated: August 8, 2026

This evocative W.D. & H.O. Wills cigarette card from the 1930 "Speed" series captures the sheer brute force of the legendary 12-cylinder Sunbeam "Tiger." Commemorating Kaye Don’s astonishing standing-start mile record at Brooklands in 1929, the card serves as a compact monument to the golden age of British motorsport and the relentless interwar pursuit of absolute velocity, pairing dynamic illustration with masterfully persuasive copywriting.

Quick Read

Subject: Commemorates the 12-cylinder Sunbeam "Tiger" and its driver, Kaye Don. Record: Details a July 1, 1929 world record set at Brooklands: a standing-start mile at an average of 100.77 m.p.h. Analogy: Features brilliant copywriting explaining that from a dead stop, the Tiger could overtake a car already traveling at 100 m.p.h. within one mile. Series: Card No. 28 in the 50-card "Speed" series,

Summary

This evocative W.D. & H.O. Wills cigarette card from the 1930 "Speed" series captures the sheer brute force of the legendary 12-cylinder Sunbeam "Tiger." Commemorating Kaye Don’s astonishing standing-start mile record at Brooklands in 1929, the card serves as a compact monument to the golden age of British motorsport and the relentless interwar pursuit of absolute velocity, pairing dynamic illustr

A vintage rectangular cigarette trading card, oriented horizontally. The front features a color halftone illustration of a dark blue vintage open-wheel race car—bearing a stark white number 1 on its radiator grille and the word "SUNBEAM" across its long hood—speeding toward the right. The driver, wearing a white cap, is tucked low behind a small aero screen. A blurred track surface and fencing form the background, conveying intense forward motion. Black text at the top right reads "WILLS'S CIGARETTES." and at the bottom left "THE 'TIGER.'" The beige reverse features black typography beneath a dark banner reading "Wills for Quality / SPEED." The text details Mr. Kaye Don's 1929 world record at Brooklands in the 12-cylinder Sunbeam "Tiger," issued by W.D. & H.O. Wills, Imperial Tobacco Co.