Here we are again: another Christmas blog. I’ve decided this time to take a more relaxed approach to the festive season. In the last entry I ranted, railed against and besmirched this time of goodwill to our fellow men, women and children.
I was totally inhospitable to what is a period of celebration when many of you take the time to reflect on the past year, plan for the new and thank your lucky stars for the many blessings that have been bestowed on you in 2015, especially in your hobby of classic car appreciation. As such, may I apologise to you for any ill will this may have kindled in your heart.
So, hopefully, Santa will bring you all your heart’s desire all you need to hope is that he doesn’t visit me first because I’m going to let the tires down on his sleigh. Yah Boo Sucks!
I was totally inhospitable to what is a period of celebration when many of you take the time to reflect on the past year, plan for the new and thank your lucky stars for the many blessings that have been bestowed on you in 2015, especially in your hobby of classic car appreciation. As such, may I apologise to you for any ill will this may have kindled in your heart.
So, hopefully, Santa will bring you all your heart’s desire all you need to hope is that he doesn’t visit me first because I’m going to let the tires down on his sleigh. Yah Boo Sucks!
So, as we plunge headlong into the joyous chaos of yuletide 2015 I thought I’d take some time to identify some of the key vehicles you’re likely to encounter in the feast of entertainment that will be strewn before you in the TV schedules.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)
Or as it’s known in our house: ‘Not Bloody Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Again’. There’s a common pub quiz question which asks who wrote this whimsy and their link to James Bond. Most will know the story was written from a hospital bed by Ian Fleming (for his ill-fated son Caspar) as he recovered from one of his many life-style related illnesses. It’s interesting that Fleming was pretty consistent in providing his fictional heroes with tricked-out vehicles although CCBB was less deadly than some of Bond’s conveyances.
CCBB itself was actually a series of bespoke-built cars made especially for the film with the drivable versions having a beefy three-litre Ford engine. Having said that, I must have sat through this confection so many times over the years that I simply can’t do it again. Not without going mad. So it’s fair to say this film is definitely not ‘my little choochy face’. In fact, the only bits I still like are the scenes with the terrifying Child Catcher. Lollypop anyone?
CCBB itself was actually a series of bespoke-built cars made especially for the film with the drivable versions having a beefy three-litre Ford engine. Having said that, I must have sat through this confection so many times over the years that I simply can’t do it again. Not without going mad. So it’s fair to say this film is definitely not ‘my little choochy face’. In fact, the only bits I still like are the scenes with the terrifying Child Catcher. Lollypop anyone?
TT Special Triumph 650: The Great Escape (1963)
Not actually a car but certain to make an appearance in the inevitable screening of The Great Escape over Christmas. The keen-eyed will wonder what we were doing supplying the Nazis with our sublime Triumph motorbikes for Steve McQueen to ‘borrow’. Although they did have to disguise it as a BMW to make it contemporary to the film.
Unfortunately the German bikes just weren’t up to the job of jumping into the barbed wire or indeed of keeping up with Steve on his TT Special so they had to film the sequences carefully to keep up the excitement. Despite the fact that I’ve seen this film more times than I care to remember, I still live in hope that one day, when I watch it again, that Steve makes the jump successfully.
Unfortunately the German bikes just weren’t up to the job of jumping into the barbed wire or indeed of keeping up with Steve on his TT Special so they had to film the sequences carefully to keep up the excitement. Despite the fact that I’ve seen this film more times than I care to remember, I still live in hope that one day, when I watch it again, that Steve makes the jump successfully.
Mini Cooper – The Italian job (1969)
I’ve written a lot about this car (and film) and I’m not going to cover old ground yet again. Just to add my comment re the end of the movie as the coach teeters over the edge of the Italian alpine road and Michael Caine turns to the camera and says: ‘Hang on lads, I’ve got a great idea.’ Here’s my idea: show a different film ITV4!
1959 Cadillac 355 ‘Commercial Chassis’ – Ghostbusters (1984)
With the re-make due for release in 2016 it’s pretty certain that the original Ghostbusters films will be rolled out sometime in December. I don’t mind them to be honest and thought Bill Murray et al were highly entertaining as inept ghost botherers. The vehicular star, known as Ecto 1, was a 1959 Cadillac 355 Commercial Chassis customised by the Miller-Meteor company into a utility vehicle. In this case it was an end loading ambulance/hearse combination which seems appropriate for the subject matter and was further modified with other such ghost hunting paraphernalia by the production company.
It’s another example of an ordinary working vehicle resurrected to a superstar status that wouldn’t have even been considered when it was originally put into service. Hence its value has increased exponentially. I wonder if we could do the same with some of the woeful cars the UK pumped out in the seventies. Ghost hunting Montego anybody?
Panther-Westwinds De Ville – 101 Dalmatians (1996)
It’s another example of an ordinary working vehicle resurrected to a superstar status that wouldn’t have even been considered when it was originally put into service. Hence its value has increased exponentially. I wonder if we could do the same with some of the woeful cars the UK pumped out in the seventies. Ghost hunting Montego anybody?
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| Who ye gonna call? Ecto 1 in Manchester July 2016 |
Panther-Westwinds were a unique British company created in the mid-seventies by a man called Bob Jankel. Based at the historic Brooklands racetrack they developed a series of highly distinctive vehicles including the Lima and Kallista sports cars and the indifferent, log-like, Rio. All were based on the running gear of mainstream cars such as Vauxhall Magnum and Triumph Dolomite but with striking bodies and styling produced by Panther themselves.
Related to this it’s almost certain that the above film will be front and centre in the schedules this Christmas. And the vehicle that Cruella De Vil (Glenn Close) uses in her murderous quest for 101 Dalmatian pelts is one of the flagships of the marque: a Panther De Ville. To be fair, it’s a match made in heaven as this rare, neo-classically styled car was described by Jankel as appealing to the taste of: ‘nouveau riche customers’ i.e. the kind that might wear animal fur. If you’ve seen one you’ll know they are an imposing, stately machine reminiscent of a Bugatti Royale but based on reliable and solid Jaguar engineering. Apparently two of the 60 De Villes made were bought by Elton John and Oliver Reed.
Thinking about it, if you combine those two using that machine out of The Fly someone very like Cruella De Vil would undoubtedly emerge.
Related to this it’s almost certain that the above film will be front and centre in the schedules this Christmas. And the vehicle that Cruella De Vil (Glenn Close) uses in her murderous quest for 101 Dalmatian pelts is one of the flagships of the marque: a Panther De Ville. To be fair, it’s a match made in heaven as this rare, neo-classically styled car was described by Jankel as appealing to the taste of: ‘nouveau riche customers’ i.e. the kind that might wear animal fur. If you’ve seen one you’ll know they are an imposing, stately machine reminiscent of a Bugatti Royale but based on reliable and solid Jaguar engineering. Apparently two of the 60 De Villes made were bought by Elton John and Oliver Reed.
Thinking about it, if you combine those two using that machine out of The Fly someone very like Cruella De Vil would undoubtedly emerge.
Of course, there are many others I could have mentioned (and have in previous missives) that may be seasonally paraded on the tube this year: Herbie the VW, any number of Bond cars, a time travelling DeLorean or even a bat mobile or two. But whatever they wheel out for your viewing pleasure may I hope it’s part of your enjoyable Christmas sprinkled with lashings of festive cheer. See you in 2016…
