CELEBRITIES’ FIRST CARS

In front of the camera or using their driving skills to compete for trophies, everyone was in the same position when they got the keys to their first cars. Just like us they had to scrape the cash together for a not-so dream car – or maybe even do it on t

MIKE BREWER Presenter of Wheeler Dealers: Dream Car, Wheeler Dealers, Deals on Wheels and Driven.

‘It all started with my first car, a hearing aid beige Mini 1000 – GJJ 550J. I drove that car everywhere but hated it when it continually overheated. My dad and I replaced the radiator and hoses, flushed the engine and took the thermostat out, yet it still overheated. Coming back from Brighton one day, I knew it was going to boil over, so I pulled over, put one of my socks over the temperature gauge and never looked at it again. That cured the problem!’

STEVE BERRY Presenter and writer of Top Gear fame, BBC Five Live and the Discovery Channel, among others.

‘My father gave me a Citroën Ami 8 Break when I passed my driving test, then replaced it with a base model Mini 850. Ten years later I was in my first Top Gear voice-over session and the Alfa SZ 2600 Zagato flashed up on the big screen. ‘Anyone know where they got those headlights from?’ asked Chris Goffey. I piped up: ‘Citroën Ami.’ I never really got on with my on-screen colleagues and I think I now know why – no-one likes a smart Alec.’

ALEX RILEY

Lifelong car enthusiast with Top Gear and Discovery Home and Leisure’s Short Circuits on his CV.

‘In summer 1989 I got a job selling aerial photographs in Lincolnshire and bought a Citroën Visa 14TRS. It was faultless, apart from the rear lights, wiper and brakes (which didn’t work) and the clutch cable (which kept coming off the pedal). And the clogged radiator. I’d drive with the heater blasting out until I got to traffic lights, then it’d boil over, drown the distributor and leave me stranded. Happy days.’

BRON BURRELL

The rally driver and her allfemale crew campaigned in the London to Mexico Rally 50 years ago.

‘In 1966 I went to Liverpool to work for what I thought was a rally team, but ended up doing petrol station accounts, pumping fuel and generally being a dogsbody. Eventually, I saved enough to buy an Austin-Healey 3000 MkIII BJ8 on the “never-never”. I got a job as a secretary in a solicitor’s office and some days could only afford chips – no fish. Money was tight, but I managed the rent and the repayments for my gorgeous car.’