BOXING CLEVER

Joseph had to build not one, but two roof boxes in order to create his Anglia panda; the first fell off on the A610 and, according to Joseph, ‘didn’t survive’. This did, however, provide him with the opportunity to produce a box to the correct dimensions, using a friend’s Cheshire police roof box for the measurements. And yes; the police lettering does light up.

He says: ‘ The roof box sits about 95 per cent forward of that white line to be period correct because that’s the highest point on the roof.’

Joseph did, however, receive a stroke of good luck when he was able to mix the official Ford colours of Lagoon Blue and Ermine White from original colour chips, courtesy of a local paint shop. He was also able to source the car’s original 1197cc Kent engine, which has a lot more poke than the 997cc unit. The pair of air horns under the bonnet are difficult to source, but create the correct tone. Joseph eventually found his in France.

Inside, rather than paying for a complete retrim, Joseph took the complete and soundly-preserved vibrant red vinyl interior out of a rotten early base model Anglia donor car. The dashboard is from a Deluxe, complete with glovebox. Joseph also fitted the sort of period-correct Westminster radio that Unit Beat Police officers would have used to stay in touch with their station in the Sixties.

In addition, Joseph has wired a cable into the radio that can be plugged into a smart phone: ‘ There’s a lot of radio chatter on the Unit Beat Policing YouTube channel, so I play that while the car is on display at shows and just leave the windows wound down – it sounds good!’

The work took about 14 months and a great deal of expense to complete. Joseph says: ‘I think the blue beacon alone was about £300, which is ridiculous for something that you can’t ever use on the road, but that’s what you do, isn’t it?

‘I built it to be as period-correct as possible, but not immaculate because I wanted this one to be used. I own three other Ford Anglias and this is the one that the dog goes in. It’s also my wife Faye’s favourite to drive.’

Panda Anglias would have been used in period to transport an officer between the various areas that they were required to patrol.

Joseph Gabrielli wearing a Derbyshire tunic. The uniform remained unaltered from the panda era until well into the mid-Nineties.

A helmet will fit, though some forces chose to issue their panda drivers with flat caps instead for better clearance and practicality.

Westminster radio was a vital link with the station.