In short order, we decided that British-owned firms – Bristol, Morgan, Austin – were a shoe-in. And so were firms that, like Bentley and Rolls-Royce, have always operated within these shores, but now have foreign owners.

That was the easy part, and one which in a very short but noisy discussion formed the lion’s share of the top 100 shortlist. We sought the very best of breed and turned over a few surprises.