Noel's ten

I was born just after the 2nd World War and there was still rationing. My parents, Dudley and Lydia, were both school teachers and money was extremely tight. I recall they had a BSA sports car of some sort. Apparently at the age of 6 I climbed in it in the garage and managed to start the car which unfortunately was in gear. I and the family car were launched into the workshop bench. Dad was not amused and it wasn't the only time I was to crash a car. My parents were quite adventurous for the time and we holidayed around Europe. I have a wonderful picture of mum and dad standing either side of their Mk 1 Ford Consul outside the Monaco Yacht Club. I recall that we flew across the channel in a Bristol Super Freighter which held three cars. It was all very adventurous at the time and to a young mind rather bizarre sitting in this noisy very uncomfortable canvas seat looking through the open door at three cars wobbling around in the nose of the aircraft. Dad took me to Brands Hatch on a couple of occasions, but the world of motorsport seemed remote and out of reach. It's incredible for me to think that not so many years later I raced saloon cars at Brands and almost every other circuit in the UK. I owned a couple of go-karts but never competed in a championship. Instead, we'd go down to a public kart track in Tilbury in Essex and basically throw the thing around until something mechanical or physical broke. I think it was the beginning of my entrepreneurial streak because I bought and sold go-karts through the wonderful Exchange & Mart and made enough money to buy my first car. I got my driving licence three weeks after my 17th birthday and bought a Minivan. It cost me £90 and I recall that petrol was two shillings and nine pence a gallon.

1. 01

   Minivan

   

   I was grateful to have wheels, any wheels, at the age of 17. The Minivan although visually dull did teach me a lot about car maintenance. I would, for no particular reason, take the engine out still on the front subframe in less than 45 minutes and then for no particular reason put it back again. I think I did attempt to fit a high-performance head but I was still at school and money was very tight. I didn't like the fact the starter button was on the floor and it had roof vents. It felt very commercial and of course there were just two seats. I had a mattress in the back, no not for that reason, so that I could take friends with me. I once transported the entire Primary School football team where I was teaching in the back of the van. What? That was the kind of thing that people did in those days. No seatbelts just get everybody in and let's go.

2. 02

   Mini Cooper

   

   While I was having to make do with the Minivan the lad up the road whose dad had considerably more money than my dad used to roar up and down in a Mini Cooper. He would do handbrake turns at the end of the road and it had one of those straight through exhausts. I shoved a broom handle up my Minivan exhaust but the sound wasn't as good as the crisp Mini Cooper. Later in life I had the supreme pleasure of spending a few hours with Paddy Hopkirk when I flew him from Donnington Park to London in my helicopter. Gosh, I have met some incredible people over the years. Paddy had a drink flask with him and he kept offering me a swig which of course much to his irritation I kept declining. Eventually, his personal fluid level reached the point where he asked if I would land so he could relieve the pressure. I spotted a fairly remote hillside, landed and over the noise of the engine warned him not to go round the back of the chopper. He followed my advice and relieved himself beneath the powerful main rotor downwash. On a hot summers day, the next part of the flight was dominated by the overwhelming smell of piss. So the Mini Cooper is the No2 Car of my Life because when I really wanted one, I couldn't afford one, but now I can. I'm very fortunate that I had a long association with the British car industry and I was given the honour of driving the 5 millionth Mini off the production line at Longbridge.

3. 03

   Range Rover

   

   I performed a similar role when I drove the final classic Range Rover off the production line. These days it's very difficult to imagine the utter excitement when the original Range Rover was launched. I had one of the very first in that mustardy colour with the plastic seats and rubber mats and of course it was just a two door. They didn't make a V8 version, but I got a wonderful guy called Alvin Smith to stuff one of the Australian V8 engines into it and I fitted wide Wolfrace wheels. In those days the police had white Range Rovers which were distinguishable with their roof mounted spotlights. So I put a pair on my car and it was amazing how quickly people got out of the way on the motorway! I must've had a dozen different Range Rovers over the years but the best one ever was a six wheel version I had specially made. It had a super tuned V8 engine mated to an automatic box and with wide wheels. It cornered like it was on rails. One day I was driving along Tottenham Court Road and a guy in a Porsche signalled for me to pull over and he offered me a massive sum of money on the spot. There was no way I was gonna sell my beloved bright red six wheel Range Rover until he offered me an obscene amount of cash and the car was his.

4. 04

   Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow

   

   I was very fortunate to have two wonderful parents who prepared me for adult life with love security and opportunity-the three most important things that any parent can give their child. I was also very fortunate to be able to show my appreciation in a practical and material way during their lifetimes. One of my better mental aberrations occurred just before Christmas 1978 when I was driving around Berkeley Square in London and saw a particularly nice Rolls-Royce in Jack Barclays showroom. I went in through those famous front doors which had welcomed pop stars, film stars and gangsters and had a bit of fun haggling about the price. My timing was impeccable because they clearly wanted to shift some stock before Christmas. I got the car at a really good price and on Christmas Day it arrived outside my home where we were having a family celebration and mum and dad thought I had hired it. We went for a drive and when I encouraged mum to check her make up in the sun visor mirror, an envelope fell into her lap. She opened it and turned to me with tears in her eyes. She then said to my dad "Dudley I think you better pull over and read this". It was a letter on Jack Barclay headed note paper, which I still have to this day, saying that the directors of the company wish Mr & Mrs Edmonds great happiness with this, their first Rolls-Royce. The next part of the story is quite a long one but suffice it to say that Lydia Edmonds who could give Hyacinth Bouquet a run for her money, thoroughly enjoyed that car for many years. However, when my father passed the car languished in a very damp shed for many years. And then when mum departed, I was faced with a very difficult decision of either restoring the car or selling it for spare parts. Actually, it wasn't a difficult decision because the emotion outweighed any financial rationality. It wasn't restored to concours condition because I wanted it to retain as much of my parents spirit as possible. It still has a whiff of mum's favourite cigarettes and her music selection is still in the cassette rack. I exported the car to New Zealand but the roads in Tasman are really not good enough for such a wonderful old girl so she is now back on the Isle of Man looking stately, gorgeous and packed with happy family memories.

5. 05

   Ford Cortina Mk3

   

   In the 1970's I was a very high profile DJ presenting the Radio One breakfast show to over 14 million people every morning. It was a decade where John Webb ruled Brands Hatch and introduced all sorts of clever ideas to try and attract large crowds to his Kent circuit. I don't recall how the invitation to take part in one of the Shell Sport celebrity races actually came about but I do have a rather bizarre black-and-white photograph of a lot of famous people, certainly more famous than me, preparing to do battle in a Grand Prix support race. I'm standing just to the side of Michael Parkinson who is having a good scratch while talking to David Frost. In fact I hadn't been in the company of so many famous people before and I was slightly overwhelmed- so I went out and beat them on the track. My performance was noted by the marketing people at Ford and a wonderful competitions manager for Castrol- Roger Willis. I was really hoping they would offer me a 3 litre Ford Capri but instead they wanted to publicise the Mark3 Cortina and I ended up with a two door version prepared by some clever people at Willment. Sponsorship came from Motorcraft. Talk about being dropped in the deep end of national saloon car racing! The big stars of the time were Tony Lanfranchi and the legendary Gerry Marshall. These guys were really experienced and of course they were racing every weekend. I was also focused on my radio career and the new opportunities the BBC were giving me on television. I didn't have any practice time away from each event, so I really was learning on the job. Tony and Gerry were very supportive, particularly in the corners where they very kindly helped me on my way- quite often into the Armco! I have a real soft spot for that Cortina and a model sits on my bookshelf to this day.

6. 06

   Ford Capri

   

   Yes another Ford but remember, I do come from Essex. I really wanted a Cologne Capri-still do! Instead Ford gave me a 3 litre Capri which I raced in the national championships. I really loved that car and so did Gerry Marshall who never missed an opportunity to rub his bodywork against it. I didn't win any races but I certainly pulled in some really big crowds and can claim that I introduced drag racing to Silverstone. Word had got round the paddock that Castrol were paying me £2000 a race which was a lot of money in those days. This didn't go down very well with some of the other drivers and at a wet Silverstone we all raced off and I think I was the only one to touch the brakes at the first corner. Everybody else relied upon my brakes and I watched the rest of the race from behind the barriers. This was a period of incredible opportunities. The Tour of Britain in which I competed with my wife Gill as navigator. By day 3, we were doing really well and were about to move up into the top 10 when I lost concentration on the Brecon Beacons. It was one hell of a smack. Three somersaults and two rolls. I know the detail because the Rallying Vicar witnessed the whole thing. I don't remember very much other than my seat broke and I ended up in the back of the car. When I got out, I had a searing pain in my back and collapsed. They thought that I had broken my spine. It was all very dramatic but thankfully nothing more than a very badly torn muscle which talks to me to this day. Thankfully, Gill was totally unscathed. I believe the corner was named after me which of course is very nice. The following year, I was back for more. This time with a proper driver. A chap called James Hunt. He interrupted his pursuit of the Formula One world championship to very kindly drive a Vauxhall Magnum with me sitting next to him. I think his mind was very much on the next weekend's Grand Prix because he wasn't listening when on a special stage in Norfolk I asked him very politely to turn 90 degrees right as our progress was blocked by a pine forest. When he realised I was serious he hit the brakes, we went straight on at considerable speed and the car hit the biggest bloody pine tree in all of Norfolk. I must say, to James credit he simply swore and then tried to restart the engine. This proved to be more difficult than he at first appreciated as the gear lever was now where the rear seats should be. Needless to say, we didn't finish the rally.

7. 07

   McLaren F1 GTR

   

   On Youtube you can see a three part BBC documentary entitled Noels Le Mans Dream about the two car team I entered in the Le Mans 24 hour race in 1997. Two years previously I had enjoyed a boys weekend at the event with Clarkson, Mason, Rhodes and others, and long after they returned to normality I was still planning on entering my own team. Actually, I really hoped I would be good enough to drive in the event! As part of the process which proved I wasn't, I had the opportunity of driving the European championship winning McLaren F1. Ray Bellm kindly looked the other way while my hero Derek Bell explained some of the principles. I completed a very sedate initial lap and came in for the mechanics to check the car and have my belt tightened and out I went. The main straight at Snetterton is quite long and I got up to a crazy speed before I saw the 300 marker and thought that was a good point to hit the brakes. To my great embarrassment I learnt the power of carbon brakes and I had to change down and drive to the corner. After a few more laps, I came into the pits and thanked Ray for the experience and Derek for the conclusion that I would never make the grade. I was actually offered the chance of purchasing the Harrods McLaren, with which my friend Dave Price, who all those years ago managed the Cortina I raced, nearly won the 1995 Le Mans race. In the end it finished third. Unfortunately, at the time I didn't have a spare £300,000. How many millions do these cars go for now?

8. 08

   La Riviera

   

   A car I had created to suit my South of France lifestyle. I call it a celebration of the Jaguar SS 100 rather than a replica. It has a number of important "modernifications" including improved braking and suspension, a wider track, E type Jaguar wire wheels, competition seats with headrests, an auto box and whisper it-air-conditioning. At one time I thought I would sell versions of it but in the end I only sold one. But it was to Monaco's wealthiest man and he absolutely loved it. I named the model La Riviera and my particular car bears the name of the area where we used to live-the perfume capital of France-Grasse.

9. 09

   MGB GT

   

   Car No9 came into my life in a very unexpected way! In 2018 the BBC commissioned a TV series featuring four celebrity couples taking part in an Endurance Rally around Southeast Asia. These rallies combine high-speed touring, special stages and time trials. Participants are generally rather wealthy people who own extremely valuable classic competition cars of all ages. The age of the competitors also varies but generally speaking, we are talking about car enthusiasts of a more mature disposition. Liz and I accepted the BBC invitation to participate along with three other celebrity couples. None of the others had any competition experience and as it later transpired three of them didn't even have driving licenses. As is the way with such productions, they wanted an exciting initial reveal of the cars we would be driving. So on a sunny morning in Thailand the eight of us were ushered out of the hotel to see 4 classic rally cars lined up in the car park. I quickly scanned a Morris Minor-oh dear I hope not-a Hillman Imp-not particularly keen, had one years ago and it wasn't particularly reliable, and a Mini-okay, we can make a go of that.... but there at the end of the row was a British racing green MGB GT-I looked at Liz and she nodded and we kept our fingers crossed that this magnificent car would be ours for the next 7 days and 4000 kms of competition driving. Indeed, the producers allocated the cars and we got the MG. Instantly, I could see that it was magnificently prepared. We were gonna have a lot of fun and we were going to win! The other participants in the rally had already been competing for a week and we joined them for the final week of the endurance rally which would take us through Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and into Vietnam with the finishing line in Saigon-sorry Ho Chi Minh City. Well, the first day was pretty uneventful and then on day two, we had the first special stage. It was 15 km of loose tracks through the rice fields. The first three classic rally cars, a Mercedes, a Porsche and a BMW left the start line in clouds of dust. This was serious stuff. The producers got a bit of a surprise when they realised that Liz would be the driver and I would be the navigator. Because of my previous motorsport experience, they had simply assumed I would drive. Why would I, when Liz is actually an absolutely brilliant driver with a really competitive streak? So the start line marshal counted us down, he banged on the roof and away we went. Honestly, you would've thought that Liz had been competing in rallies all her life. We were absolutely flying when suddenly course marshals were in the road waving their arms for us to stop. Shirley and Martin Kemp in the Mini had rolled on the very first corner and the paramedics were at the scene. Thankfully it transpired that the roll cage had done its job although Martin did hurt his hand. Understandably, they were both rather shocked. The producers declared there would be no more competing that day. Next morning, we were called into a meeting where the senior producer said that London-it was funny he never said who, he just said the BBC in London- had declared there would be no more competitive driving and we should just follow the other cars on the public roads. Liz and I wondered at which point in the commissioning process had the BBC not realised that an Endurance Rally was likely to have the odd incident? Anyway, to cut a very long frustrating story short the producers attempted to create a false competitive atmosphere and we resisted. Time and again we were told to slow down and even pull over so that the other celebrities could be filmed overtaking us. Some days they even transported the other cars on a low loader and the other celebs went by minibus! This was the worst kind of contrived television. The whole saga became quite a big press story particularly when I complained about the fraud to the Director General himself. Not surprisingly Liz and I did not feature very much in the transmitted programs but much to the delight of all the other competitors we really made the most of our fabulous MG and at the prize-giving on the final night in Saigon we were presented with a magnificent trophy in recognition of our determination to have a bloody good time. Alan the experienced mechanic who looked after the MG complimented us on the sympathetic way we had made the most of the car's performance despite the rough terrain and we were genuinely sad to say goodbye to such a wonderful car. Over the next few years the MG would come up in conversation and Liz would relive some of the really great moments we had enjoyed on the rally. I had never heard her talk with such affection about a motorcar and so began my attempt to trace the MG and see if it could be acquired. In 2025 we returned to the UK from our home in New Zealand to visit family and friends. We stayed in a very nice house in the Cotswolds. It had a stable yard with a big barn and we had a little exploration to see what the owners kept in the barn. I pretended to examine an old garden tractor while Liz spotted a car under a dust sheet. I encouraged her to lift the sheet and the smile and misty eyes said it all. Actually, her first reaction was to say 'what an incredible coincidence that the car we rallied around Southeast Asia was stored in a barn in the Cotswolds'. But then the penny dropped. It was a surprise on a par with the one I had given my parents all those years ago. So the Car of my Life No9 is a fully rally spec MGB GT.

10. 10

    Ford GT40

    

    My final choice is the one I'd choose if I could only nominate one car that has had a major significance for me ever since my teenage years. It's not easy to condense my story into just a few sentences, but I will attempt to be brief. In the 1960s I attended Brentwood School in Essex. In those days it was an all male public school of 1000 boys. I hated every second of it but was saved by the pirate radio ships which suddenly appeared off the Essex coast and totally changed my ambitions. However, that's a different story unrelated to my passion for GT 40's. I wasn't particularly interested in Formula One but I was fascinated by the Le Mans 24 hour race. My interest intensified with the participation of the Ford Motor Company. The story of how Henry locked horns with Enzo is brilliantly presented in the film Ford versus Ferrari although the American bias distorts the true story of where the cars were actually built and developed. Anyway I vowed that one day I would own a GT 40 and so I did. When my radio career took off and I had a few bob my first significant purchase was Chassis 1072 a road legal MK I with the distinction of having MK III opening windows. I bought the car from a lovely couple in the Midlands who had competed 2 HEV in hill climbs. It cost me £10,000. I owned her for longer than I've ever owned any other car and when family priorities took precedence and we parted company she left a massive hole in my life which thankfully was filled by helicopters. In 1980 I qualified as a helicopter pilot a license I still hold today. The freedom of being able to transport yourself swiftly and safely far above congested roads and claustrophobic regulations is a unique experience for which I will be eternally grateful. But the GT40 bug is a difficult one to shift and I acquired a former competition car Chassis 1014. This is the car which featured on Top Gear when Clarkson couldn't fit in a GT 40 and called upon the services of a midget or whatever he called me. I also made the headlines when I claimed I had driven the car at 186 miles an hour on the Tring bypass in Hertfordshire. Of course I hadn't. It was nearer 190mph and just to add a little flavour I claimed I was naked at the time. More wonderful headlines followed. Oh how we miss the News of the World. No, I don't still have the car and I believe it recently was sold at auction for over £6 million. Any regrets? Nah..... I love cars but I really can't justify spending that amount of money. Which is why having owned 2 genuine GT 40's I've come to own a replica. I bought it last year and it's pretty good. It certainly passes at a cursory glance, but to anyone who knows about these cars it is clearly not authentic. So why did I buy it? In 2019 we emigrated to New Zealand and after three years in the Auckland area Liz and I moved down to the Motueka River Valley on the South Island. One day I was reading a UK motoring magazine and came across an article about Kiwi racing drivers, Bruce McClaren, Chris Amon and Denny Hulme and the role they played in that epic 1966 Le Mans race. As we all know the Ford publicity machine attempted to stage a dead heat finish of 3 GT 40s. As the film explains the plan backfired when the French authorities declared the McClaren/Amon car had started further down the pit lane and therefore had covered a longer distance in the 24 hours. I have to admit all I care about was the fact that the Car of my Life had dominated my favourite race. Of course GT 40s went on to have further successes throughout the 1960s. So what am I going to do with my replica? I'm going to celebrate this epic victory in 1966 by incorporating the colour schemes of cars 1, 2 and 5 in a single livery. The design will also acknowledge the role of 3 brilliant drivers from the Land of the Long White Cloud-Aotearoa. Chris Amon from Bulls on the North Island, Bruce McClaren from Auckland and Denny Hulme who was born in Motueka just a few miles from where I now have a home.