Grimshaw were one of the earliest archtop builders operating out of England and namely were responsible for producing some very nice Gibson equivalents, during a period in which Britain and the USA had a trade embargo meaning Gibsons et al weren't available for sale in the UK. To fill this gap, Grimshaw looked heavily to Gibson for design inspiration with this guitar clearly being modelled on a contemporary L-5/L-12, etc.
 
And here is an opportunity to own one of the first ever English-made guitars - the Grimshaw G3.
 
You read that right - this in an electric guitar. There existed a more conservative approach to guitar building during the 1950s. As builders slowly began to experiment with amplification, they did so with a gentler approach to guitar's top - it was considered sacrilege to drill holes into a pristine, laboriously crafted and finished arched top unless absolutely necessary. This is why you see designs such as the 'monkey on a stick' style pickups - they go to quite some length (literally) to avoid the need to drill into a guitar top. 
 
In this tradition, Grimshaw came up with what they dubbed the 'Invisible Pickup' system - 6 adjustable pole pieces mounted into a 'faux fingerboard' extension as the end of the board, discretely leading under the pickguard to a single volume pot. It is a novel and usable pickup and to me feels like a sweet acoustic jazz / 50s single coil tone, passive by design and warm with a nice low end. I believe this predates the existence of Broadway models etc, which were also early English-made electrics. 
 
This guitar I believe has had a single owner from new, an old school jazzer with excellent taste in gear. This reflected in the wear on the guitar - it's had a single careful owner who played it very regularly and kept it maintained when necessary. As such, there is evidence of what looks to be a very historic and carefully-done neck reset with evidence of dowels/finish touch up. As a result, it plays with a perfect action with what looks to be the original bridge, even with the heavier jazz strings it's currently sporting.
 
Being an old archtop, it has evidence of side cracks which again, appear to have been attended to by the original owner. The sign of a life well-played.
 
The finish appears otherwise original, as do all of the fixtures, fittings and tuners etc, save for the odd pickguard screw. The wiring has been touched up on some connections and all pots etc appear original. Frets appear original, as does all the beautiful binding and inlays etc.
 
It further comes with its original green lined case, which is fairly worn though functional and pairs handsomely with the guitar's sunburst finish. 
 
A fantastic original English-made electric jazz guitar that holds its own against its American counterparts.