PICTURE GALLERY: 30 years of 993 with Tony Hatter

Thursday 2nd November was a day that will live long in the memory. Not because of the ferocious Storm Ciaran, which lashed the United Kingdom for a gruelling 24 hours, resulting in flooded roads and cancelled flights.

Moreover, 2nd November 2023 will be remembered as the day the UK Porsche community came together in spectacular fashion to celebrate 30 years of the 993, in spite of Mother Nature’s best effort to derail 9WERKS’ intricate plans.

Despite the rain, the flooding, and the cancelled flights, 100 enthusiasts joined us for an evening at Porsche Centre Bournemouth to welcome Tony Hatter, designer of the 993, who gave a presentation on the development of the last air-cooled 911 generation, alongside his work on the Carrera GT, 996 GT2, and Le Mans-winning GT1 race car.

Before that though, around 30 Porsche 993 owners braved the weather warnings to join forces and chauffeur Mr Hatter from Heathrow airport down to the south coast, in a display entirely in keeping with the ‘Driven Not Hidden’ mantra long championed by the 9WERKS Collective.

The very fact Mr Hatter’s flight wasn’t cancelled was a miracle in itself, but to then see a group of classic 911s coming together for a 100-mile rally in conditions you’d think twice about deploying a Macan for, summed up the spirit which would ensure this would be a special day no matter what.

On reaching the south coast, the cars were given pride of place in the Porsche Centre Bournemouth showroom, which had been cleared prior to ensure the Centre served as a timewarp back to the 1990s, when the new cars on sale were cooled by air, and presented in Mr Hatter’s timeless design. 

The 100-strong crowd then joined 9WERKS Radio presenters Lee and Andy, alongside Mr Hatter, for a special Q&A session focussing on the British designer’s illustrious career at Porsche – you can watch the live broadcast here, and listen to the podcast version on your preferred platform. Afterwards, Tony was happy to chat with enthusiasts (and even sign a bonnet or two!) while staff from the Centre were on hand to chat with enthusiasts about its commitment to the Porsche Classic partner program. Later, Andy presented Tony with a special ‘993 affirmation’ book, featuring hand-written sentiments from owners and admirers of their experiences with the 993 over the last 30 years. 

9WERKS would like to thank Tony for his time visiting the UK, and Porsche Centre Bournemouth for working with us to host a special evening celebrating all things 993. A HUGE shout-out goes to the 993 owners who braved such challenging conditions to make the rally happen, and lastly, high praise must be lavished on Thomas and Ola from Porsche Club Norway’s Sunnmøre region, who travelled via two flights to the UK for the event – even persevering when their connecting flight got cancelled. Driven Not Hidden indeed, whether by a flat six engine, or merely a desire to celebrate the amazing legacy of the Porsche 993, and the thriving community behind it.

Take a look below at some picture highlights of the day by the talented Simon Jessop. All images are copyrighted and belong to the photographer and 9WERKS.