Let me start by admitting that I’m absolutely guilty of eating my lunch at my desk in the office most days. Sometimes I get up, walk to the charity shop over the road for a wander at the most, but generally, I stay put. That wasn’t the case today, though, because I had a birthday to go and celebrate at the Triumph Visitor Centre.

Today, the 24^th March 2026, marks what would have been the legendary Steve McQueen’s 96^th birthday. What better way to commemorate the day than to go and hang out with the very bike featured in The Great Escape?

The Triumph TR6, ridden by Steve (and jumped by Bud Ekins), calls the motorcycle factory in Hinckley home. Perhaps one of the most iconic motorcycles in cinematic history, this served as the star attraction of today’s meet of McQueen and Triumph enthusiasts.

Dick Shepherd, the man who restored the bike, hosted the meet, and gave us an insight into the bike’s story – from it being mistakenly painted green instead of battleship grey like other German bikes of the film’s setting, to being sold to a farmer and being used to herd cows; until the farmer passed away and left it to a farm worker, who stored it in a barn for years.

Dick (left), myself, and my dad. When you're asked if you'd like to sit on the bike, you don't say no!

The bike has lived a long life since the filming of The Great Escape in 1962, but much to everyone’s delight, Dick was able to start the bike for us after we were treated to a slideshow of never-before-seen photos, courtesy of the McQueen estate, giving us an insight into the king of cool’s life behind the scenes.

Then, after the attendees threw a few more questions at Dick (including confirmation that the cow-herding farmer did, in fact, know exactly what bike he was riding), it was time to go outside and feast our eyes on the other very special bikes that had come to accompany the TR6.

In 2021, Triumph released 1,000 limited-edition Steve McQueen 1200 XE Scramblers. These bikes have found their homes all across the world, but six were in attendance at the factory today; #0699, #0558, #0267, #0192, #030, and #0003 – the latter of the six being my dad’s pride and joy. They joined the TR6 at the front of the building for a photo opportunity; and naturally, I managed to cameo in a few of the photographs too.

Whilst the crowd was admiring the bikes (and my dad was being quizzed about his lovely new exhaust which had been put on for the sake of my right leg whilst I’m on the back), I managed to grab a few minutes with Dick himself, to chat about the bike and why Steve McQueen remains a hero to many.

K: The Great Escape film came out 63 years ago, and here we all are, celebrating the film.

D: It was filmed in October ’62, and it was released - the premier was in ’63, in London.

K: And I know that obviously you were saying earlier that people were drawn to Steve because of his persona, and he was just a very likeable person – why do you think it still appeals to Triumph fans? Why do you think that we’ve had such a good turnout today?

D: I think because it was the very first bike scene in a film – and it was something that was never thought would ever be done, what Bud Ekins achieved with Tim Gibbs – and McQueen, obviously – was something really special.

K: And I think it’s stood the test of time, the film, because I would say – and a lot of people would also say that it’s aged very well.

D: Well, every Christmas it comes on!

K: Did you anticipate that it would retain such a popularity, and that so many people are still interested in coming and seeing the bike now even after all this time?

D: Oh, definitely not. I think if this [event] had been held on a weekend then we would have had more of the original Scramblers here. What you’ve got to remember is a lot of people are working at the moment, but we’ve had a good turnout, we’ve had six [LE] bikes turn out.

K: Seven, if you include ol’ Steve! And my final question – now, I know a lot of films are classics, they don’t need a remake; I’m a bit of a film nut and I think that some films just need to be preserved as they are and not touched… but, if the film [The Great Escape] didn’t exist, and it was made today, what Triumph do you think they’d use?

[My dad in the background: “ooooh, you fighter!”]

D: I would say they’d definitely use the Scrambler.

K: Like the Daniel Craig film, No Time To Die?

D: If you look at the Bond film, they use the Scrambler in there – which we have one of those.

K: I’ve sat on it, yes! I’m a bit of a fan.

The six LE Scramblers attending the event. See also; world's most expensive game of dominos.