The fact that this Riley 9 Kestrel was built in 1934 is happenstance, but fortunate for the family who have known it for more than six decades because it represents the peak of its type. ‘Dad bought it in 1960, for my sister and myself to learn to drive in,’ John Fletcher tells me. ‘He’d just bought an automatic Jaguar 3.4 and wasn’t about to let us drive that. I was 16 and my sister 18.’ Yet not for them any ordinary runabout, it seems.
These days the Riley is resplendent in a smart shade of grey, which suits its stylish, streamlined appearance, all the result of a recent restoration, the intention being that John’s car can be handed along to the next generation of the Fletcher family to be enjoyed for years to come. But after serving him splendidly in a shade of pale blue during his younger years, it had been awaiting its revival after many a false start. That it remained in his care for so long speaks volumes about the place it has always held in his heart.
‘I moved from home in Northamptonshire to Chichester to go to college. I’d built my own canoe and took it down there on the roof of the Riley. I used to take it down to the
