Rolls Royce Used by Churchill Restored to Former Glory after Sitting in Garage for Decades

1. Just like new: Classic car restorer Charlie Tope with the 1923 Silver Ghost Rolls Royce, once used by Sir Winston Churchill, which had been deteriorating in a garage for decades

It has been used by Winston Churchill to give driving lessons, served in the Second World War as a recovery truck and gained international fame in hit TV series The Avengers.

Now, after decades rusting away in a garage, this 1923 Silver Ghost Rolls Royce has been restored to its former glory - and is thought to be worth a cool £250,000.

The vintage motor is said to have served the former British Prime Minister when he used it to give driving lessons to the first female MP, Lady Astor, on a Kent estate.

During the war years, its back end was cut off to convert it into a recovery truck with a mini crane bolted on to the chassis for the auxiliary fire and ambulance service in Manchester.

And in the 1960s, the Rolls appeared in 18 episodes of the Avengers as the car of choice for English gentleman character John Steed.

During the series, the classic car had a steak cooked on her engine and a ladder smashed through the windscreen.

But after the show the Rolls was forgotten about - and sat deteriorating in a Sussex garage until earlier this year. It had been purchased for just £200 in the early 1950s by the grandfather of Tania Turner, from Sussex.

He spent £2,000 on restoring the vehicle, but sadly left it in his garage for decades before passing it on to Mrs Turner and husband Andy.

They enlisted the help of classic car expert Charlie Tope to return the Rolls to the open road.

Mr Turner said: 'A friend had his old Alvis restored by Charlie and we thought he would be the ideal person to tackle the Rolls. She looks absolutely fantastic - better than new.'

Mr Tope, from Modbury, Devon, has spent the last six months carefully restoring the vintage vehicle and is proud of the result.

He said: 'It's been a wonderful project but when I took it on I don't think I realised how big a task it would be.

'She may be a car designed for only a couple of passengers but at almost 5m long and over 2m wide she is more like a small lorry.'