Vintage collection
10 May 2007
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| Some of the vehicles at P&A Wood |
CAR enthusiasts from across the UK converged on Great Easton to celebrate the centenary of the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow on Sunday.
More than 2000 people attended the invite-only day at P&A Wood, the Rolls-Royce and Bentley Heritage Dealers and were treated to a day to remember that included a display of some of the world's finest cars.
Paul Wood, co-owner P&A Wood, said: "It was a fantastic day and some of the cars were amazing. We had the first ever Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow here. It is possibly the world's most valuable car."
The 1907 car, registration number AX201, was the car that won the motor company the accolade of being the producer of the world's best cars. It was restored by P&A Wood. Although Mr Wood would not be drawn on its precise value, he did say that it was "pretty priceless".
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| It was a great day out |
Also on display were some unique models including the original Silver Ghost, which was driven from London to Edinburgh in top gear, a journey, as Mr Wood pointed out, that was carried out before the building of any motorways and the A1 passed through numerous towns and villages.
"I was thrilled with the day. It's by far the biggest event we've ever organised and it was all done by the staff here," said Mr Wood.
"One guy phoned me up to ask if he could bring his Silver Ghost down from Chester. Of course I said yes, but I was amazed when he turned up. I had expected him to arrive with it on a trailer, but he'd driven it all the way down here."
The Austin 7 Owners Club also arrived en-mass, something that Mr Wood said he particularly liked because, where as the Silver Ghost was the top of the market, the Austin 7 was designed for the man on the street and showed the great contrast between the two cars.
Keeping the crowds amused was an appearance by Laurel and Hardy look-alikes who turned up in a vintage Ford Model T and performed some suitably rib-tickling comedy scenes.
"They were great," said Mr Wood. "They come from up near Manchester. They're getting quite a reputation across the country now."
A flypast by a Spitfire, Hurricane and a Lancaster bomber provided an aerial tribute to "The Best Car in the World".
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