The revolutionary Morris Minor was launched at the Earls Court Motor Show on 20 September 1948. Named after an earlier Morris Minor car of 1928, it was the work of a team led by Alec Issigonis, who later designed the Mini.

The prototype had been known as the Morris Mosquito, and some later models were called Morris 1000. Variants included the standard saloon, a wood-framed estate called the Traveller, and a convertible, plus a panel van and a pick-up truck version.