1. So, farewell then, mighty Mini. You always had a lot of friends. But not enough to keep you running. I had a Riley Elf once, as it happens.

2. The very last proper Mini staggers off the production line today at Longbridge. It's number 5,387,862.

3. So there's a lot of them still about, all over the world.

4. The first Mini, designed by Alec Issigonis, emerged blinking into the sunlight in 1959. It cost less than £500.

5. Issigonis was also responsible for the Morris Minor. It too hung around well beyond its sell-by date.

6. The Mini quickly acquired the killer tag, 'design icon'.

7. The Mini cult reached its frenzied height after the release of the movie The Italian Job.

8. The little car's fate was sealed when BMW, the former parent of Rover, designed a trendy new version. It will be produced at Cowley.

9. The crisis-wracked Rover group, remnant of the once-proud British car making industry, is now seeking a tie-up with Malaysian upstart Proton.

10. It is, as Keith's mum would say, the end of an era.