SUPERSLEUTH Inspector Morse’s iconic Mark 2 Jaguar has been named as the top British TV car of all time by public sector workers.
The fictional Oxford detective’s legendary burgundy motor, driven by the late John Thaw, cruised to victory ahead of rivals such as Del Boy’s Reliant Regal three-wheeler van and The Saint’s classy Volvo P1800.
The list of favourite telly motors was put together by Boundless, the membership club for public sector workers that began life way back in 1923 as the Civil Service Motoring Association.
Boundless asked an expert panel to nominate classic TV cars before members of the 230,000-strong organisation voted. Morse’s motor, which was released in 1959 in the UK and went out of production in 1967, was a clear winner.
That’s not surprising, perhaps, when it was designed to embody Jaguar’s ideals of “grace, pace and space”. The 2.4-litre engine gave it a top speed of 102mph and it could reach 60mpg from a standing start in 14.5 seconds.
And even if actor Thaw once said it was a “beggar to drive”, it made a huge impact on viewers.
Second on the list was a very different style of car – Del Boy’s 1967 three-wheeler Reliant Regal Supervan III. Emblazoned with “Trotter’s Independent Traders” on the side, it is possibly the most instantly recognisable car on British television, designed perfectly for the comedy Only Fools & Horses.
Third place went to the Volvo P1800 driven by Roger Moore as the gentleman-cum-spy Simon Templar in the television spy drama The Saint. Moore loved the rather suave P1800 so much that he drove one off-screen as well.
The rest of the top 10 were made up of Steed’s Bentley (The Avengers), the “General Lee” Dodge Charger (Dukes of Hazzard), Starsky & Hutch’s Ford Gran Torino, Magnum PI’s Ferrari 308, Batman’s Batmobile, Knight Rider’s Pontiac Firebird “KITT” and children’s favourite Brum.
