DOWN MEMORY LANE
Classic & Sports Car|November 2023
As C&SC hits 500 not out, our most prolific and popular wordsmith turns Jackanory to tell the story of his lifelong link to the magazine
MARTIN BUCKLEY
DOWN MEMORY LANE

Strangely, it's the early issues of Classic and Sportscar (as it was called until November 1996), before I even joined, that stick in the mind best possibly because they were the formative years of exposure to the old cars that really floated my boat. Old cars that in many cases were not really very old at all. May 1982-issue two-was the one that first captured my imagination: not because of the MGA Profile, or even Mike Taylor's story on the Monica, but a 'back-to-back' between the BMW 3.0 CSi and Fiat 130 Coupé (both less than a decade old) by launch editor Matthew Carter.

That four-pager - printed in glorious full monochrome - first inspired me to put pen to paper: my slightly irate teenage missive appeared in the Letters pages in July. More importantly, I was hooked on this new monthly formula, which comprised comparison tests, interviews with collectors and a balance of subjects from each 'classic' era.

Cars to dream about and cars you might actually be able to afford-the latter often given exposure in pithy two-page stories on subjects such as the Sunbeam Rapiers and Austin A35s that were then the meat-and-two-veg of the classic hobby.

I devoured it from back to front, although the regular Track test was not really my thing. Mike McCarthy ghost-wrote it for our tame historic racing god, Willie Green - who, by coincidence, will reappear in these pages next month. Not that you'd ever have known it wasn't the great man himself speaking, although I do recall a story on an Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 Stradale (February 1983) in which Mike admitted in the copy that the driving impressions were conducted on the end of a tow rope!

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der November 2023-Ausgabe von Classic & Sports Car.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der November 2023-Ausgabe von Classic & Sports Car.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

WEITERE ARTIKEL AUS CLASSIC & SPORTS CARAlle anzeigen
Mick WALSH
Classic & Sports Car

Mick WALSH

'Had someone said that this worn-looking titan would win the most famous old-car event, we would have laughed'

time-read
3 Minuten  |
November 2024
ALFA ROMEO STELVIO QF
Classic & Sports Car

ALFA ROMEO STELVIO QF

Rewriting the rulebook on what an SUV can do, and how it can make you feel

time-read
2 Minuten  |
November 2024
FLOATING INTO THE FUTURE
Classic & Sports Car

FLOATING INTO THE FUTURE

Citroën's DS-replacing CX was at a cutting edge so sharp it still looks fresh today, and it had the drive to match - as five superb survivors reveal

time-read
8 Minuten  |
November 2024
"It's a car for posing in really"
Classic & Sports Car

"It's a car for posing in really"

Broadcaster Michael Buerk reflects on more than three decades with his beloved Jaguar E-type S1 3.8 fixed-head coupé

time-read
8 Minuten  |
November 2024
HONDAS DECK THE HALL
Classic & Sports Car

HONDAS DECK THE HALL

The Japanese firm's Los Angeles collection is now on public display for the first time in two decades

time-read
4 Minuten  |
November 2024
ABSOLUTELY buzzing
Classic & Sports Car

ABSOLUTELY buzzing

Honda's Si Civics brought agile, cheap fun to motorists long before the Type R name got anywhere near a hatchback

time-read
7 Minuten  |
November 2024
THE FEMININE TOUCH
Classic & Sports Car

THE FEMININE TOUCH

In 1955, General Motors styling guru Harley Earl brought 11 talented women into the male-dominated world of automotive design. What was their lasting impact?

time-read
7 Minuten  |
November 2024
Out on a limb
Classic & Sports Car

Out on a limb

Panther's innovative Solo 2 was something completely different, both for its maker and the sports car market

time-read
7 Minuten  |
November 2024
Restyles with substance
Classic & Sports Car

Restyles with substance

Panther Westwinds blended a passion for pre-war designs with modern-era mechanical usability and remarkably fine coachbuilding

time-read
10 Minuten  |
November 2024
Dead ringers
Classic & Sports Car

Dead ringers

The Maserati Kyalami and De Tomaso Longchamp share much, having emerged from the same stable, but are poles apart at heart

time-read
8 Minuten  |
November 2024