Driven By Desire

Valerie Singleton meets a couple whose passion for Porsches created Canford Classics, a business which renovates and restores these iconic cars back to their full glamour

- Valerie Singleton

TUCKED away on a working farm in Dorset, on the edge of the village of Winterborne Kingston, is an unexpected treasure trove. Inside a collection of renovated farm buildings are some of the most beautiful and iconic cars ever produced. This is where Canford Classics have their business, renovating and restoring Porsches of all marks and dates.

It was here, on a rather damp and overcast morning, that I met the owners, Dr Alan Drayson and his wife Dominique. My aim was to learn a bit more about what is involved in bringing these classic cars back to pristine condition.

The former hay barn, now the build shop, is where most of the work goes on. Lined up inside, in a dazzling range of colours, were cars in varying stages of repair. The first one that caught my eye turned out to be a Le Mans tribute: a 1970 2.2s replica of the one Steve McQueen drove in the film Le Mans.

Alan has been car mad since he was a teenager. “I took my first Beetle to bits and put it back together again when I was just 16,” he tells me proudly. “And I’ve never stopped enjoying working with cars.”

He and Dominique met at an inter-school play and became childhood sweethearts. They’ve been together for 25 years and both followed other careers before Porsches took over their lives. Dominique was in marketing, sales and event management and Alan has a PhD and Masters in Coastal Geology.