0:00:04 > 0:00:08This summer, I went on a memorable journey into the past.
0:00:08 > 0:00:12I took to the road in classic 1950s cars,
0:00:12 > 0:00:16looking for that long-lost golden age of motoring.
0:00:16 > 0:00:20The journey took me from the rugged coast of Cornwall
0:00:20 > 0:00:24to the magnificent mountains of Scotland,
0:00:24 > 0:00:28in search of the most popular leisure routes of the '50s.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31And frankly, they didn't disappoint.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Oh, yes! Oh, extraordinary.
0:00:33 > 0:00:37But before I embarked on my vintage motoring odyssey,
0:00:37 > 0:00:39there were some challenges to overcome,
0:00:41 > 0:00:44Like the fact that I hadn't used a gearstick for decades.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47Oh, bugger it!
0:00:47 > 0:00:50And that's what this episode is all about.
0:00:50 > 0:00:55I suppose you could say this is the story of my road to Britain's Best Drives.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58Keep going, keep going. Go, go, go go!
0:00:58 > 0:01:01And an occasionally bumpy one it was!
0:01:04 > 0:01:05Oh, my gosh!
0:01:15 > 0:01:18"Unless the learner has had expert tuition,
0:01:18 > 0:01:23"there is always the danger of his unconsciously acquiring bad driving habits."
0:01:25 > 0:01:31Before all this began, I led a rather ordinary, you might even say tame motoring life.
0:01:34 > 0:01:38I never learned to drive until I was about 40,
0:01:38 > 0:01:43simply because I couldn't afford a car before that
0:01:43 > 0:01:48and when eventually I learned how to drive,
0:01:48 > 0:01:55my cousin in Leicester sold me a second-hand Vauxhall Chevette,
0:01:55 > 0:01:59a salesman's car, which had done many thousands of miles,
0:01:59 > 0:02:02so it wasn't a hugely reliable car.
0:02:02 > 0:02:04But it was a gear car.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07I passed my test in a gear car
0:02:07 > 0:02:13and I started driving my Vauxhall Chevette.
0:02:13 > 0:02:20That was the last gear car that I drove,
0:02:20 > 0:02:23which is maybe 28 years ago.
0:02:23 > 0:02:29So, now I'm about to drive...
0:02:29 > 0:02:33six manual cars of 50 years ago.
0:02:33 > 0:02:39which is rather a daunting prospect.
0:02:45 > 0:02:51To prepare me for my road trip, the producers said they'd send me on a crash course,
0:02:51 > 0:02:56a turn of phrase that I think appealed to their rather warped sense of humour.
0:02:56 > 0:03:03I was to go to MIRA, the hush-hush motoring test facility, where they train drivers to
0:03:03 > 0:03:08cope with all kinds of challenging terrains and conditions. Oh, joy(!)
0:03:08 > 0:03:14And, as usual, the producers were keeping their cards very close to their chests.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26Well, it's all very secretive.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30They won't tell me what car I'm going to be driving.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34I think it's going to come from over here somewhere.
0:03:34 > 0:03:35All we can do is wait.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49Do you think? No, it couldn't be. Is it?
0:03:54 > 0:03:56Oh, dear, dear, dear, dear.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00A Vauxhall Chevette!
0:04:02 > 0:04:06The man with the challenge of reacquainting me with a manual gearbox
0:04:06 > 0:04:09was chief MIRA instructor Peter Randall.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15I thought you were gonna bring me something nice.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19This is nice! It's what you chose all those years ago, Richard.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23- Oh!- It's a little bit...
0:04:23 > 0:04:25The suspension is...
0:04:27 > 0:04:30Right, so, if you just start the engine.
0:04:30 > 0:04:32Like this.
0:04:33 > 0:04:36OK, let go of the key. That's good, OK.
0:04:36 > 0:04:40- It's all flooding back now.- It sounds wonderful. - All flooding back to you now.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43OK, so, clutch in.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45- Yeah.- Yeah. Into gear.- Into first.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49Into first. Ease that clutch out a little bit more.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52That's good, that's good, OK, just let that clutch right out.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56Inside the cones, we'll follow this white line now. That's it, OK.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59This is a bit severe for a first drive.
0:04:59 > 0:05:01Very gently.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06"Remember the following driving philosophy.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10"One, there is an invisible car behind you
0:05:10 > 0:05:13"and the invisible driver is watching for your signals.
0:05:13 > 0:05:18"Two, the vehicle in front of you has a poster attached to its rear.
0:05:18 > 0:05:22"On it are the words 'I am going to stop, can you?'
0:05:22 > 0:05:26"Three, everyone on the road, including pedestrians,
0:05:26 > 0:05:31"is mentally deficient, therefore it all depends on you."
0:05:31 > 0:05:34- We're basically doing a figure of eight.- Right.
0:05:34 > 0:05:39- But I want you to do is get up enough speed to change into second gear.- Oooh! Yes!
0:05:39 > 0:05:44Well, because I've never driven in a figure of eight before in my life.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47It's rather pleasant.
0:05:47 > 0:05:49Like being at the funfair.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53- We're cooking with gas now! - Oooh! Second?
0:05:53 > 0:05:56Yeah, second, let's go for it! Live dangerous!
0:05:58 > 0:06:02Well, we've not hit a cone yet, which is... That's a bonus!
0:06:02 > 0:06:05Now we'll reverse back.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07- All that way?- Yes.
0:06:07 > 0:06:09It's miles!
0:06:09 > 0:06:13- OK, can you see the cones through that mirror?- No.
0:06:15 > 0:06:20Oh, whoa, whoa! Don't panic, don't panic.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28- Yeah. Yeah.- Ahhh! Oh.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32- Ohh.- A bit more gas. - I was getting cocky!
0:06:33 > 0:06:36My left foot hadn't worked so hard in years.
0:06:36 > 0:06:41I was actually getting cramp, but no sympathy from the producers, oh, no!
0:06:41 > 0:06:45They decided it was time to practise my hill starts.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Sadists.
0:06:53 > 0:06:58OK, Richard, so let's move it up a little bit more, and stop.
0:06:58 > 0:07:00Stop, stop, stop, stop. Brake!
0:07:00 > 0:07:02This is not fair.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07"The start-away, when on a hill, can be a menace to the learner.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11"Here is when perfect clutch control can be a boon.
0:07:11 > 0:07:16"Under test conditions the vehicle must not slip back,
0:07:16 > 0:07:17"not even one inch".
0:07:19 > 0:07:23As soon as that handbrake comes off, let the clutch right the way out.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26OK, and back off now.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34Well, we knew you needed a bit of practice, didn't we?
0:07:36 > 0:07:40Cos on some of these routes you may be doing, could be hilly.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45Well, I won't be doing it in this bloody car, I tell you.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48If I'm doing it in this car, the series is off!
0:07:51 > 0:07:55That's great, keep it going Richard. Keep it going. Go, go, go, go.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59- Ah!- I don't know where I'm going. - Sraight ahead, down the other side.
0:07:59 > 0:08:01Wo-ho! Cover the brake, cover the brake.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03Jesus.
0:08:03 > 0:08:05Yeah, that got you sweating.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08I think we'll just turn the heating down, shall we?
0:08:08 > 0:08:13Thankfully, it was soon time to say goodbye to that rusty old Chevette
0:08:13 > 0:08:16and slip into something a bit more comfortable.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22Right, well, wheel spin start. Leave a bit of rubber!
0:08:24 > 0:08:32This is a 1950s Jaguar XK150 and my first experience of driving a classic car.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34This is a bit better, Peter.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37You're happier with this then than the Chevette?
0:08:37 > 0:08:40Well, first of all, the seat is much more comfortable.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42Much more at home in this car.
0:08:42 > 0:08:45- This is you.- I think it's got a bit of a style to it, as well.
0:08:45 > 0:08:50And I think that this would have been the car, you would have had after the Chevette.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52Yes, possibly.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56Let's just knock it into third gear.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00- Which is up there. - Into third, clutch back in.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08But just when I was starting to relax a bit...
0:09:10 > 0:09:12What we doing here, Pete?
0:09:12 > 0:09:17Well, I thought we'd better introduce you to some low friction surfaces.
0:09:23 > 0:09:24Oh, my gosh!
0:09:25 > 0:09:28"Another general remark which can be made here
0:09:28 > 0:09:31"is to stress the dangers of skidding."
0:09:37 > 0:09:38Wayhey!
0:09:38 > 0:09:41"It has been my privilege to drive with
0:09:41 > 0:09:43"some of the finest motorists in Europe.
0:09:43 > 0:09:47"Driving with these men in wet or frosty weather, we have frequently
0:09:47 > 0:09:51"been passed, especially by women drivers,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54"or elderly men who should have known better".
0:09:55 > 0:09:58Too much gas is going to cause the rear wheels to spin.
0:09:58 > 0:10:03- Yes.- And that can cause us to lose control, so if we're driving along
0:10:03 > 0:10:09here and I accelerate too much, the car may go into a slight...
0:10:09 > 0:10:11Yes, yes.
0:10:11 > 0:10:16So when you fell the spin kick in, you take your foot off the gas.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19Not completely, we need to just ease the gas back.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23What about the brake, are you keeping your...? You're not touching.
0:10:23 > 0:10:25I'm not touching the brake at all.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28I hit the brakes, we have no steering.
0:10:28 > 0:10:34So I must come off the brakes and the steering will return to us and we bring it back in a straight line.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37Brake again, off.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40On, off.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44- So every time I release the brake, I get my steering back.- Yep, yep.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48- And I can control the car in the right direction.- I see that.
0:11:00 > 0:11:01Woo!
0:11:01 > 0:11:06I don't know why, but Peter didn't ask me to have a go behind the wheel on the skid pan.
0:11:07 > 0:11:08Funny, that.
0:11:16 > 0:11:21The era I was set to return to was of course a very exciting one.
0:11:21 > 0:11:26Back in the '50s, our Prime Minister famously told us all that we'd "never had it so good".
0:11:26 > 0:11:32As far as motoring was concerned, it seems he may have been right.
0:11:32 > 0:11:37"There are now well over 6 million motorists in Britain.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40"Though hundreds of thousands take their cars abroad
0:11:40 > 0:11:43"for their holidays, the vast majority remain at home.
0:11:43 > 0:11:46"They need not be disappointed, for Great Britain
0:11:46 > 0:11:48"is inferior to no country.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51"Britain, it would seem, has been designed by nature
0:11:51 > 0:11:53"for the pleasure of the tourist".
0:11:55 > 0:12:02I'm taking a break from my training to find out just why driving in '50s Britain was so very special.
0:12:05 > 0:12:09The Heritage Motor Centre in Warwickshire
0:12:09 > 0:12:13holds the world's largest collection of historic British cars.
0:12:13 > 0:12:17And the curator of this fascinating place is Stephen Laing.
0:12:19 > 0:12:24How does motoring essentially differ between now and the '50s?
0:12:24 > 0:12:27Well, I think today, motoring is to get from A to B.
0:12:27 > 0:12:34And one of the things about the 1950s was that the motorcar was taking off again after the war.
0:12:34 > 0:12:39- Yeah.- Motoring was more affordable and people were using them just as a method for a day out or a holiday.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43Yes. You used to go out and say, "Let's go for a drive".
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Yes, a picnic, a little spell in the countryside.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49All very relaxed, unlike maybe today's motoring.
0:12:49 > 0:12:51And the motoring WAS the holiday.
0:12:51 > 0:12:54It wasn't just the method of getting to your holiday.
0:12:54 > 0:12:58Motor industry was really in a boom period in the '50s and that's because
0:12:58 > 0:13:01Britain had come out of the austerity of the war.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04There'd been rationing and you couldn't get hold of a car.
0:13:04 > 0:13:09In the 1950s, it became a seller's market and everybody wanted one of these cars.
0:13:09 > 0:13:14Many didn't have one before the war, they maybe learnt to drive in service or that kind of thing,
0:13:14 > 0:13:18so it was a really popular thing to have during the 1950s.
0:13:18 > 0:13:24Yes, and very exciting. So, presumably in the 1950s, there was much more space in the road?
0:13:24 > 0:13:27The roads weren't as crowded as they are today?
0:13:27 > 0:13:32Absolutely, in the 1950s about 1 in 20 people owned a car, whereas about 1 in 2 people have a car now.
0:13:32 > 0:13:38There was much more space, and driving was a much gentler experience, I guess.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43"The byways of Britain are never crowded
0:13:43 > 0:13:48"except in a few specially favoured areas such as Cornwall or Devonshire
0:13:48 > 0:13:50"at the height of the summer season.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53"More often than not, the majority are deserted
0:13:53 > 0:13:58"except for the occasional farmer's car or delivery van".
0:13:58 > 0:14:01What sort of wage brackets could afford a car in the '50s?
0:14:01 > 0:14:05It was still a fairly middle and upper class ownership.
0:14:05 > 0:14:11Working class, you could afford it if you saved up, but it was really more of the middle classes,
0:14:11 > 0:14:17and those that toured Britain in a motorcar probably would have been at that kind of wage level, really.
0:14:17 > 0:14:22- Yeah.- In the 1950s, the motorcar began to look like what we think of a motorcar today.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25It was sleeker and also you had the influence from America.
0:14:25 > 0:14:31The chrome styling, chrome radiators and wings in, rather than separate wings
0:14:31 > 0:14:34and a more carriage-like look from before the war.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Do you, by any chance, have a Vauxhall Chevette in your collection?
0:14:40 > 0:14:42- We don't, no.- Why was that, I wonder?
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Well, we don't have room for them all, really.
0:14:47 > 0:14:54Right, now I'm in the Heritage Motor Centre car park, and at last,
0:14:54 > 0:14:58I'm going to get some time by myself to practise my gears.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00So. Let's hope I don't, erm...
0:15:02 > 0:15:04..crunch it.
0:15:04 > 0:15:05Here we go.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10First gear... Second gear.
0:15:10 > 0:15:12Not bad.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14Up to third.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17Quite smooth.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24Other motorists.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27Oh, we're on the open road.
0:15:27 > 0:15:33These people passing by here don't realise what danger they're in.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35And there's a roundabout coming up!
0:15:37 > 0:15:41Oh! I'm going round, oooh! Straight on.
0:15:42 > 0:15:46And of course, I've never driven a car and talked to a camera before.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50I've driven and spoken to passengers, but it's rather strange having you here.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53Although, you don't know you're here, yet.
0:15:54 > 0:16:00Yes, a lot of you who are watching this of course, don't realise you're going to watch it yet.
0:16:00 > 0:16:06And one day you will see it and one day you will realise the trauma of handling a gear stick.
0:16:11 > 0:16:12Oops.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17We're back. And no-one's been killed.
0:16:19 > 0:16:20Handbrake on.
0:16:24 > 0:16:25Phew!
0:16:29 > 0:16:33The producers weren't content with me merely mastering a gear stick.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37Oh, no. They claimed they wanted me to be able to cope with anything
0:16:37 > 0:16:43Britain's Best Drives could throw at me, even if that meant going off-road.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45Surely not?
0:16:45 > 0:16:48Oh, this is not fair.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50This is not fair. How do I get it up there?
0:16:50 > 0:16:53Why they want me to go up here, I've no idea.
0:16:53 > 0:16:59If doing the best drives of Britain takes me up a hill like this, I'd be very surprised.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04Vroom! Accelerate.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14Wonderful. Well done, Richard. Brilliant.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Push the water ahead of you. You're a little bit quick.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22I see. Gosh.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26It even put me in the hands of a living legend.
0:17:30 > 0:17:33This is how it all started for me. It's unbelievable, really.
0:17:33 > 0:17:38Derek Bell is one of Britain's most successful racing drivers.
0:17:38 > 0:17:43A five times winner at Le Mans, he began his racing career in the early '60s,
0:17:43 > 0:17:48in the forerunner of this modern Caterham, the Lotus Seven.
0:17:48 > 0:17:53This is what racing was like, I mean, this still takes you back to that era.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59There's still that feeling of your backside virtually on the road.
0:17:59 > 0:18:04You feel every bump. You know exactly what the car's doing at every opportunity.
0:18:04 > 0:18:10Derek was to give me a masterclass in driving high-performance cars.
0:18:10 > 0:18:11They've made cars so much safer.
0:18:11 > 0:18:17I mean in my era, I mean, I sat in the car and the seat was a tank,
0:18:17 > 0:18:23with 25 gallons in. There were pontoon tanks either side of my legs and then there was a lap tank.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26So I had 70 or 75 gallons of fuel.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29- On your lap?- Over your lap here.
0:18:29 > 0:18:35Where the steering column went through and so if you actually happened to go into anything,
0:18:35 > 0:18:39it just exploded and that's why it was so awful, the crashes.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42- Were you aware of that danger? - Oh, absolutely, yes.
0:18:42 > 0:18:44Yeah, a minute-to-minute drive.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48Absolutely. Well, you never thought about it once you were in the car.
0:18:48 > 0:18:54Cos, you know, as soon as that flag drops the bullshit stops, we say, but also at the same time,
0:18:54 > 0:18:57all you do is concentrate on racing and being as good as you can.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59You don't think of the danger.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05The most important thing with driving a car is to be smooth.
0:19:05 > 0:19:10You've probably noticed I'm not putting, I'm not gripping it like a sort of...ape.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14I'm actually quite light-fingered, light-touched on the steering wheel.
0:19:14 > 0:19:19- Yeah.- And everything you do, you do smoothly, you break in a nice straight line, you slow it down,
0:19:19 > 0:19:24get the right gear, come off the brakes and then turn in the corner and gradually apply the power.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27So, you think you're ready to drive this?
0:19:27 > 0:19:32Well, I'll only find out with your guidance.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39First time in a Ferrari.
0:19:39 > 0:19:40Probably, possibly.
0:19:43 > 0:19:47You'll take second very early on, it doesn't need a lot of revs,
0:19:47 > 0:19:50it's not like your 1½ litre Volkswagen.
0:19:50 > 0:19:54- Right, so we can take second about now?- Yeah. Get second now.
0:19:54 > 0:19:56- Of course, I want to look. - You've got fourth.
0:19:56 > 0:20:02- That's all right- I shouldn't look, should I?- It's difficult when you've not put your hand on it before.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04Take your time. You've gone back to first.
0:20:04 > 0:20:05Oh, that's first now.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11What a lot of people do is they turn the wheel but they're actually not on the power.
0:20:11 > 0:20:16- As you turn the wheel, you need to apply power to tell the car what you're doing.- Right.
0:20:16 > 0:20:20Just gently turn it, don't brake ever in a corner, just nice gentle turn.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22- That's it... - Don't ever brake on a corner?
0:20:22 > 0:20:25No, not unless you're in a hell of a mess.
0:20:25 > 0:20:26- You're doing very well.- Am I?
0:20:26 > 0:20:30Well, you've never driven it before and it is a road you don't know.
0:20:30 > 0:20:36To drive this with somebody who thinks he knows what he's doing beside you is quite something!
0:20:37 > 0:20:45Well, Derek was being very charming, but I'm not sure I'll be following him into Formula One just yet.
0:20:45 > 0:20:51Back in the city, the opportunities to put one's foot down are few and far between.
0:20:51 > 0:20:56One of the disadvantages of being, shall we say, well known,
0:20:56 > 0:20:59is that when you're in a traffic jam,
0:21:02 > 0:21:07people have a chance to... recognise you
0:21:07 > 0:21:11at close quarters and... talk to you.
0:21:11 > 0:21:15I've never actually been asked for an autograph
0:21:15 > 0:21:18in a traffic jam,
0:21:18 > 0:21:21but I've certainly had a few,
0:21:21 > 0:21:23what shall we say,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26well-known phrases quoted at me.
0:21:26 > 0:21:33I'm battling through the 21st century traffic to an iconic 1950s location
0:21:33 > 0:21:36where the producers have promised me a surprise.
0:21:44 > 0:21:49The Ace Cafe on London's North Circular was built in 1938.
0:21:49 > 0:21:55It was like the original motorway service station, long before motorways had even been invented.
0:21:55 > 0:22:01They had a car wash, a showroom, garages, and of course, the cafe and restaurant.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04Lovely, thanks very much.
0:22:04 > 0:22:12But it was in the 1950s when this place became famous, or should I say infamous, as a hangout for Britain's
0:22:12 > 0:22:18emerging rockers who, before the days of speed limits, used to race each other on the road out there.
0:22:19 > 0:22:26Break 100 miles an hour and you became one of the feared and revered Ton Up Boys.
0:22:26 > 0:22:31On a busy, busy day, this whole car park would be
0:22:31 > 0:22:34packed with bikes and across the road, apparently.
0:22:34 > 0:22:35They'd park everywhere.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38But it wasn't bikes I was there to see,
0:22:38 > 0:22:44it was the six 1950s cars that I was going to have to drive all over Britain.
0:22:48 > 0:22:52And to be honest with you, I'd been dreading this moment.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56After the nasty surprise that was the Vauxhall Chevette, I feared
0:22:56 > 0:23:01the producers may have lined up half a dozen rotting old bangers.
0:23:03 > 0:23:05Oh!
0:23:05 > 0:23:07Oh, my goodness, it's splendid!
0:23:11 > 0:23:15It's a Zodiac. It's an old Zodiac.
0:23:17 > 0:23:21Oops, doesn't seem terribly manoeuvrable to me!
0:23:21 > 0:23:24Very, very nice.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28Oh, here's another one! Here's a... Oh, pretty colour.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31Oh, they're coming from all over the place. This is a little Austin.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38It seems much more manoeuvrable.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41I think they're going to crash.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45Lovely, oh, very nice.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49Oh, and here's the Morris Estate coming, I think.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52Yes. Oh, that was to be expected.
0:23:52 > 0:23:54It's a Morris Minor 1,000.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57A Traveller.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02Well, they all look superbly well-kept. Oh, oh!
0:24:02 > 0:24:07An open two-seater. It's a Triumph, yes.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11Oh, very pretty. Very pretty.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17I'm going to take my thermal underwear, just in case.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19Oh, oh, look at this.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23This is beautiful, it's a Bentley, I think.
0:24:23 > 0:24:29It's very stately looking, you know? The sort of car the Queen goes around in.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33One, two, three, four, five.
0:24:33 > 0:24:37So there's...oh!
0:24:37 > 0:24:39This looks like a camper van!
0:24:39 > 0:24:44Er...surely I'm not expected to drive around in that?
0:24:45 > 0:24:48Britain's Best Drives in a camper van?
0:24:48 > 0:24:50Maybe I'm expected to stay in it as well?
0:24:50 > 0:24:52That's a Volkswagen.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56I wonder what they're like to drive.
0:24:59 > 0:25:00So there they were.
0:25:00 > 0:25:06Six cars, each a daunting driving challenge in its own right.
0:25:06 > 0:25:10It was time to seek some words of encouragement from their owners and guardians.
0:25:10 > 0:25:15Starting with that enormous and frankly terrifying Bentley.
0:25:19 > 0:25:23- You're driving the Bentley today?- That's right. It's a 1952 Mark 6 Bentley,
0:25:23 > 0:25:27which is shell grey and Tudor grey.
0:25:27 > 0:25:31- It's very smart. - 4½ litre, straight 6.
0:25:31 > 0:25:32- And it's easy to drive?- No.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37That's the last thing I want to hear!
0:25:37 > 0:25:39- Right-hand gear change.- I know.
0:25:39 > 0:25:43It's got no power steering, no flashing indicators,
0:25:43 > 0:25:47it's got no door mirrors, it's got tiny little wing mirrors.
0:25:47 > 0:25:51To start it you've got to unlock the system, then you have to switch the system on,
0:25:51 > 0:25:56then you have to switch the fuel pump on, then you have to press the starter button,
0:25:56 > 0:26:00- having remembered to pull the choke out and set the hand throttle.- Choke!
0:26:00 > 0:26:04I haven't handled a choke for centuries!
0:26:04 > 0:26:08- Now's your chance to learn. - I can't remember what it was for!
0:26:09 > 0:26:14- I've got a TR3A Triumph. - Easier to drive than the Bentley?
0:26:14 > 0:26:17Oh, I don't know about that.
0:26:17 > 0:26:20She's obviously manual, gearbox.
0:26:20 > 0:26:24- And overdrive as well, on second, third and fourth.- Right.
0:26:24 > 0:26:28- So, you've got additional gears to play with.- How many gears altogether?
0:26:28 > 0:26:30Um, so we've got seven.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32Plus reverse gears.
0:26:32 > 0:26:39- Seven, gosh! So, can anyone tell me something encouraging about driving vintage cars?- Afraid not.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43For an automatic car driver, you're going to find it a real challenge.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45- You will enjoy it.- I will enjoy it?
0:26:45 > 0:26:49You will definitely enjoy it, I mean, it will be a different experience
0:26:49 > 0:26:54- with every single vehicle, but you will enjoy it.- You've got to slow down to the 1950s pace of life.
0:26:54 > 0:26:58I don't mind slowing down. I'm slowing down anyway.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03When you realise how many vehicles there were on the road in 1950,
0:27:03 > 0:27:07it wasn't difficult to drive a car that wasn't easy too drive in modern conditions.
0:27:07 > 0:27:13I remember I used to live on a street, where we used to play football in the street
0:27:13 > 0:27:17and every now and again, every half hour they'd say, "Oh, there's a car coming".
0:27:17 > 0:27:18That doesn't happen any more.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26Well, the rest, as they say, is history.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28Those six classic cars led to me to some of
0:27:28 > 0:27:33the most gobsmacking views that our nation has to offer.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36Beautiful, beautiful.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38Oh, wonderful!
0:27:39 > 0:27:41Bloody lovely!
0:27:42 > 0:27:47And introduced me to some absolutely fascinating and very British characters along the way.
0:27:47 > 0:27:52- Are there lots of 70-year-old climbers?- Not very many, no.
0:27:54 > 0:27:5795 years and you still haven't run out of ideas?
0:27:57 > 0:28:02A lot of people call me a bloody fool, but... and no doubt they are right.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07So, despite the occasional crunching,
0:28:07 > 0:28:09stalling and hopping..
0:28:11 > 0:28:16..something tells me I'm going to miss those old cars.
0:28:16 > 0:28:20Ha! But let's not get too carried away.
0:28:20 > 0:28:27I don't want those sadistic producers getting ideas about doing it all again.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30Well, I ask you, haven't I been through enough?
0:28:41 > 0:28:44Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:28:44 > 0:28:47E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk