The Brompton is arguably the UK's most used and best-loved folding bicycle; the must-have travelling companion to a growing band of urban commuters on the move. Kanye West is said to be an enthusiastic fan; likewise, 'Top Gear's' James May. Peter Mandelson rides one. So, of course, does fictional head of values at the BBC Ian Fletcher (aka Downton's Lord Grantham aka British actor Hugh Bonneville), whose preferred strategy for beating the London traffic is now being emulated in real life by 'Auntie's' creative head Alan Yentob. 'Brompton Man' is not only the cognoscenti's counterpart to those pedalling the Boris bike through the capital's streets but also an increasingly familiar sight in major cities across 45 different countries worldwide. Indeed, having first won a Queen's Award for export twenty years ago 80% of the London-based company's annual output of 45,000 hand-made folding bicycles now goes abroad, with the US and Japan as the principal markets.
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