The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Duke’s car fetches world record price
An Aston Martin once owned by the Duke of Edinburgh has been sold for a record-breaking £350,000.
The 1954 convertible, finished in a bespoke shade of Edinburgh Green, was sold to an online buyer after a number of bids, breaking the world record price for a 3-litre Lagonda.
The Lagonda 3 Litre Drophead Coupe was fitted with an extra vanity mirror – reportedly to allow the Queen to adjust her hat – and a radio telephone which allowed Prince Philip to speak to Buckingham Palace via a Pye relay station in north London.
He was said to have taken great delight in making surprise calls to his wife, and also in disguising his voice while chatting to Prince Charles and Princess Anne.
Auctioned by H&H Classics at the IWM Duxford in Cambridgeshire yesterday, the car was made to order for Prince Philip, winning Aston Martin its first Royal Warrant. Built in 1954, he drove it to polo matches and to drop his son off at Cheam prep school.
The vehicle and its new owner have now been invited to take part in a 90-car concours d’elegance at Buckingham Palace to celebrate the Queen’s official birthday, where British-made cars will pay tribute to the monarch.