Pollyanna — Barbara Toy's Series I

History

Barbara Toy, an Australian-born London theatre manager and writer, bought a new Series I 80-inch in 1950, named it Pollyanna and set off alone across North Africa and the Middle East from Tangier to Baghdad — the journey of her first book, A Fool on Wheels. Over the following years she drove Pollyanna through the Sahara, the Middle East and Asia, and with the later legs of her travels became the first person to drive round the world in a Land Rover, writing A Fool Strikes Oil, Columbus Was Right and other books along the way. Land Rover Classic included Pollyanna, still registered KYH 628, in the 75-year history of expedition Land Rovers it curated for the 2025 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, whose page reproduces the period photograph of Barbara Toy beside the loaded car.

The registry's model is a Series I 80 hard top in green with a roof rack of rolled tents, bedrolls and cases that drops as cargo in the game, and KYH 628 plates.

Imagery

Registry record

Manufacturer

Land Rover (Series I 80-inch)

Manufactured

Built 1950; Tangier–Baghdad 1950

Modifier / coachbuilder

Barbara Toy (expedition fit and roof rack)

Engine type

Rover 1.6 L four-cylinder petrol

Production run

1

Country of origin

United Kingdom

Operated in

United Kingdom

Status

preserved

Catalogue data

Record kind

Named model

Model line

Series I

Wheels

4

Nominal wheelbase

80″

Catalogue fields describe the vehicle's structure and body as this registry records it. They are not certified factory measurements, and no performance figures are published here.

Sources & citations

Researched sources

• Land Rover Classic curates a 75-year history of great expedition vehicles ↗ — Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance (accessed 2026-09-11)

Catalogue references

• https://www.pebblebeachconcours.net/cars/land-rover-classic-curates-a-75-year-history-of-great-expedition-vehicles/ https://www.pebblebeachconcours.net/cars/land-rover-classic-curates-a-75-year-history-of-great-expedition-vehicles/ ↗