Benjamin Zephaniah's Personal Passion: Classic cars

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Benjamin Zephaniah has always loved sports cars, but it wasn’t until he collapsed twice through exhaustion that he took them up more seriously as his hobby. His doctor told him he needed a hobby which would help him relax and take his mind off his job and his other interests.

When he was a child and he was asked to draw a picture of a car it was always a Triumph model even though he didn’t realise this at the time. His first car was a Triumph and he’s always had a thing for the make. He says he really enjoys driving when it’s warm and he’s on an open road.

Benjamin says the best thing about his Triumph is that it’s unique, no one else has one like it because of all the renovation and maintenance work he’s carried out over the years.

Creative Commons Image johnrobertshepherd via Flickr
Morris Oxford [Image: John Robert Shephard under CC-BY licence]

He also has a Morris Oxford; he says he feels like the Queen when he’s driving it, and everyone looks at him because it’s such an unusual car. His father used to have a Morris and when they first got it the whole street came to have a look, it was so big his whole family - which was large - could fit into it. He says the interior has a very distinctive smell.

Top Tip:

It’s best to join a classic car club and to get magazines to keep up with new developments. There are tips and advice that you can pick up from other people who have discovered them through trial and error. Clubs can also tell you important information such as when and where there are car shows, they can offer advice, and tell you when there are sales.

Quotes:

"I’ve never been inspired to write poetry by cars".

"The great thing about little old cars is they have great turning ability".