Marc Bolan died, aged 29, after being found unconscious as a passenger in the wreckage of his purple
Mini driven by his girlfriend
Gloria Jones. He was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. Jones lost control of the car, which then struck a steel-reinforced chain link fence post and came to rest against a
sycamore tree, after failing to navigate a small
humpback bridge, near Gipsy Lane on Queens Ride,
Barnes in south-west London. Bolan was a passenger in the car and was pronounced dead at the scene upon the arrival of paramedics. Jones was wearing a seat belt and was conscious after the crash, but was critically injured and spent some time in hospital. From the day of the accident, the site became a place of pilgrimage to Bolan’s fans and this was reported in various newspapers from 1978 onwards. Coincidentally, the registration number of the car was FOX 661L and within the lyrics of his single "
Solid Gold Easy Action" are the lines "Easy as picking foxes from a tree" and "Woman from the east with her headlights shining". In September 1997, on the 20th anniversary of Bolan's death, the
Performing Right Society (PRS) installed a memorial stone for Bolan, facing into Gipsy Lane at the base of the embankment from the "Bolan Tree" located in Queen's Ride. In 1999, the T-Rex Action Group (TAG) was formed with the specific aim of caring for the site. TAG were granted an in perpetuity lease on the site with ownership and full responsibility for the "Bolan Tree". During 2000, TAG built steps up the embankment between the "Bolan Tree" on Queen's Ride and the PRS memorial stone facing Gipsy Lane and took action needed to make the tree safe so that the threat of it falling was removed. In 2002 a bronze bust of Bolan, paid for exclusively by T-Rex Action Group founder Fee Warner and sculpted by Canadian sculptor Jean Robillard, was unveiled by Bolan's only child Rolan Bolan. In 2005, memorial plaques were fitted to the steps to remember other deceased members of T. Rex:
Steve Peregrin Took,
Steve Currie,
Mickey Finn and
Dino Dines. A memorial plaque was also included for Marc Bolan's wife June Bolan (née Child) as recognition for her contribution to his success. ==Official recognition ==