Born in London, the son of a successful builder, Mike Thorne gravitated to agriculture in his teens and soon became familiar with the tractors then used on the land, having a particular admiration for the revolutionary grey Ferguson, with its unique three-point linkage for mounting implements. As time went by he also, if asked, would construct modest buildings for local farmers, and this activity grew from being a sideline into a major business, involving large industrial buildings as well as ones for agricultural use. In the 1980s his love of tractors moved him to start acquiring examples of many makes, and over time he bought more than 100 before a change of direction saw him reduce the collection to only Ferguson and Massey Ferguson models, which are housed in museum buildings that he designed. The collection is impressive in its range and quality.