Ant Anstead Exclusive: The TRUTH About Wheeler Dealers, Radford Motors, Jenson Button & Divorce Pt.1

So the ultimate question is how a police officer playing football on the side for a bit of pocket

money goes from there to suddenly being in front of the TV cameras. Yeah, it's weird because...

It's hard to introduce a man that has done so many things. Businessmen, presenter, dad,

and of course, born mechanic. You think wheeler dealers, you think Ed. The level of hate I got.

This new guy has just taken our favourite character. I was getting death threats. I had the bumper pulled

off my car about three times. Does this now approach in the time where it was the end of

wheeler dealers? I was in this personal hurricane. I don't remember filming alone.

How are you keeping your passion alive dealing with the worst humanity? This is really difficult to

talk about. And it's hard to introduce a man that has done so many things. Businessmen, presenter,

dad, and of course, born mechanic. But in your own words, who are you and what do you do?

Blimey, what an introduction. Well, first of all, it's great to be here. Thanks for having me.

I think I'm probably best known as a car host on TV for doing car stuff. But outside of that,

yeah, dad, mechanic, ex-police officer, living in America. I've written some books.

See, when I was planning this episode, sometimes I look at my sheet afterwards. Sometimes I don't

even need a sheet. And I sat down and went, oh my God, how are we going to fit all of that into

a normal podcast episode? So today is going to take some packaging. And we've also got some

quite serious, to be honest, stuff to get into as well around a business that you were part of,

Radford Motors, business part with Jensen Button. I think we've got to because the amount of things

that come out online about that business in the last few years and never actually got a proper

response from the allegations that have been made, the controversy, I mean, just some of the titles

that I've got written down here, and Anstead's Radford Motors files for Chapter Seven bankruptcy

and fraud allegations. So we've got a lot of stuff to be getting into today. But to understand the

guy that ends up in business with the Formula One World Champion that you met on the other side

of the world in Hollywood, we've got to understand why he loves cars, because ultimately that petrol

head passion is the thing that's brought that together. So what is your earliest memory that

without that memory, cars wouldn't be possible? Oh, God, well, I think like most car guys,

I took that normal path, you know, I knew that I loved cars when I was a young child, you know,

six, seven, eight, and I did, you know, the normal things that kids that love cars do,

Lego soapboxes, you know, I remember buying a lawn mower and trying to, you know, take the

engine out and stick it into a go car. I never got it working though. You know, I got my license

the minute I was 17, I built my first car, which was a kick car when I was 16. So not only was our

car guy, because I love the way they looked and sounded, but it was more about how it worked.

So I was more about taking stuff apart and put it back together. And that's why that, you know,

kick car worked really well, because it was riveting panels. I can still remember the smell

of bathroom sealer and banging my thumb at midnight. So, you know, I knew very early on that I was

going to be a car guy. And my dad worked at a boarding school. So he worked at, he was in the

catering department at boarding school. So we lived on site at boarding school accommodation.

And one of the guys at the boarding store, I think he was a cook, had an X19, a fear patone,

like, right, average car, right? But it just, he took me for a ride in this car,

and it just blew my socks off. That's why I've got a soft spot for X19.

Do you think that's why you've got a soft spot for appreciating all cars and the engineering

behind them? Because I've seen you get excited about something like that. And then you're just

as excited about a goal wing, like there doesn't seem to be any like excitement difference between

the two. Well, I think it's probably because I'm probably more fascinated by the engineering.

You know, one of my favorite cars is a Land Rover.

Series one.

Yeah. Series one Land Rover. It's just this kind of basic engineering. It's a,

it's a vehicle that represents so much, you know, instantly recognizable on any part of the planet.

And, you know, I love working on Land Rover as much as I love working on fancy cars,

but I don't consider any of them different. The work you do as a mechanic on a Ferrari is

the same as a Ford.

But those early passions are normally what we go straight towards when we want to come out of

education, when we want to get going in life, think, what is that passion we can try and get

towards? But you ended up in the police. How did that happen?

Yeah, it's weird. You know, we, we talk about sort of this purpose and passionate life,

which is ultimately what everybody's pursuing. But I was this kind of 18 year old kid that

knew I loved cars. So I was always working on cars. You know, I had a projects,

you know, multiple projects in my dad's garage. But for work, I never knew what I really wanted

to do. And I joined the police kind of because I didn't have an option. You know, there was no other

plan B. So I joined the police when I was 18 and a half, never told my parents till the day before

I went to police training school. Why? I just kind of thought I'd never get in and like, oh, this,

you know, I didn't, I had, my auntie was a police officer, but other than that, I had nobody else

in the family that was a police officer. I didn't have any friends that were police officers.

Were they entrepreneurial? My friends family, your family? No, my dad, both my parents worked

in catering. So my dad was a dinner lady in boarding schools. And my mum did dinners for

sort of state schools. Okay. My dad worked in posh schools. My mum worked in public schools.

So, um, yeah, I joined the police. I was 18 and a half, you know, sent off to police training.

And actually it turned out the police is the perfect place if you're a car guy, because you

work shifts. So I ended up having, you know, tons of time off because, you know, you do a night shift

or an early shift. And so I was rotating the renovating of cars at the garage at home, my dad's

garage at the school, whilst working as a police officer. And, you know, as a police officer,

I worked my way up. I became an armed police officer quite young, quite early on. And I'm

really incredibly proud of my police career. You know, that was quite short. Only a few years.

Um, I, uh, I did some of the craziest stuff I've ever done being a police officer. I met

the very worst of humanity, the very best of humanity. And, um, you know, I look back at,

you know, I call it the tall belt, you know, throughout life, we accumulate these skills and

tools at the time, you don't realise what they're for. I think that's odd. Why did I,

you know, like Steve Jobs, actually, you know, he talks about taking a calligraphy course. He

just saw a poster on the wall at university. I knew he had to do something. And, you know,

that moment of him saying, oh yeah, that's interesting, became the foundation of all,

you know, typefaces on every computer in the world. My dad used to say, you've got to learn stuff.

You've got to learn stuff. You've got to learn stuff, Ben. But the fascinating thing

with you is it's not the stuff you've learned. It's the stuff that overlaps together. So

you're in the police, but you're also being paid as a semi professional footballer.

Yes.

At the same time. And not only that, weren't you goalkeeper for part of it and then striker?

Oh my God, I feel like you've done your research.

It's like you've got completely, it's like your head goes, must flip it on its head.

Yeah, well, you've obviously done your research. Yeah, I mean, I've always been sporty. I grew up

in a sporty family. My parents, my dad's sporty, my brothers are sporty. And,

you know, like most British kids, I grew up playing football and rugby and so on. And then I realised,

probably around the age of 18, I had this kind of rugby or football, but I could earn a bit of

pocket money playing football. So, you know, we're talking lower league stuff, but obviously I was

getting a bit of cash to turn up and play. And at that point, I was a goalkeeper. And then I

accelerated through the non leagues quite quickly to what was called Ryman League then, as a keeper.

And I've won promotion as a Ryman League keeper a few times. Then all goalkeepers are frustrated

strikers. That's the fact. Every goalkeeper thinks they can play up front. And in training, by the

way, it's the goalkeeper that scores all the goals. So, yeah, I did the shift once and I became a

striker and realised much half decent as a striker. So, I ended up, I think I'm the only player to

win Ryman League promotion as a goalkeeper and as a striker. Did you fall into being the striker

rather than pursuing being the striker? No, I got to a point in my life where I just loved playing

up front and I just made a call. And in fact, it was a friend of mine, a guy called Chris Mundt.

I was playing at a really good level as a goalkeeper, you know, teams like Chumsford City,

Bournemouth, you know, good level, you know, contracts, pay to play, bonuses for keeping

clean sheets, that sort of stuff. And then I'd got an injury, you know, fell out of being a

goalkeeper. And my friend Chris Mundt phoned me up one day and he's a couple of leagues lower. He

was the manager of a club called Woodson Park. We're talking like pretty much Sunday League.

And they're in a relegation dogfight. And he's like, I need you to come play for Woodson Park.

We're going to go down. And I'm like, oh, Chris, I can't. I can't come in this. And he was like,

no, no, not as a goalkeeper. I need you to come play up front. Because, you know, you're a seasoned

player now, you understand, I've been in a few relegation dogfights. Never been relegated, by

the way. So I'm like, yeah, okay, I'll do a job. And as soon as I landed on Woodson, I just scored

goals. Didn't get relegated. I got picked up by a then a higher league, scored goals, and then a

higher league. And that year, that we got promotion, I got 42 goals. Why am I picturing welcome to Raxham?

It's like that story, but yours is in reverse where you went to Hollywood afterwards.

Yeah, good point. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Instead of going to rainy whales, I ended up in California.

How are you keeping your passion for automotive alive alongside being in the police, dealing

with the worst humanity and then playing football on the side? Well, isn't that the point of passions?

You know, the point of having a hobby is it's a removal from the grind. So, you know, there

there was moments in the police that are, you know, really difficult to talk about. You know,

I was one of the first officers to go to the Potter's Bar Real Crash.

You know, I went to Fatalities and, you know, my last, I've done four CPRs. My last CPR was a 16-year-old boy.

You know, that real dark side of being a police officer, that really hard bit of humanity.

You know, you always need to try and escape that. And you do that, you know, positively. You know,

I know people in the police that did it negatively and, you know, they become alcoholics. But I always

loved Tinkering of Cars. And I think there's that escape that particularly men have. You know,

we talk about the shed. You know, guys need to have a shed or something that's theirs. And that's

what I had. The garage was my shed. So I would switch off and, you know, I was really good at it.

I really loved, you know, I understood wiring and welding and without like formal training.

Well, it's interesting this point because I, you know, being a television host,

you get targeted. That's how it works, right? If you put your head above the parapet, you get

shot at. So I get a lot of criticism because I never formally trained as a mechanic. I never went

to university to be a mechanic. I never went to college to be a mechanic. But I did it, I think,

the proper way. You know, I'm quite critical of the current education system. And I think there's

no better way than being hands-on. Like, I would rather, you know, I'm renovating this house,

I'd rather have a bricklayer that's done thousands of days of bricklaying than went to college.

So without though, Tinkering on Cars to allow your brain to breathe, would you have gone a little

bit crazy in that part of your life? No, I've never been a reckless person. You know, I've never

pretty controlled. Yeah, like, you know, I'm the guy that goes to Vegas and doesn't go gambling.

Like, I just, I'm not a gambler. I'm, you know, I'm not a big drinker. I'm, you know, I'm

healthy. You know, I like playing sport. I'm very, you know, I love my family and I'm very driven

by my children. So I don't think there was ever a time in my life I like, I'm going off the rail.

Okay. You know, because the reason I ask is, I grew up in fishing, that was a passion of mine.

Yeah, you guys definitely go off the rails. Several friends of mine ended up working

and they always kind of had a little say afterwards. It was just like, oh, shouldn't

have made our hobby our work. And it's crazy because I've seen you go from making your passion,

your hobby and turn it into a lot of the premises of your work. And yet you still feel like it's

your passion. Oh, absolutely. You know, ultimately, if something's embedded in you, it's embedded in

you, you know, if, if something lights you up. Yeah. And until it doesn't. So the old question

is how a police officer playing football on the side for a bit of pocket money, as you call it,

goes from there to suddenly being in front of the TV cameras. And then after that over to Hollywood

and so much in between so many shows and programs and books. And I'm pretty sure you wrote a book

on police cars. I did. Yeah, nerdy. Last year produced the end of season formula one film,

like that there's so much that you pack into the time that you have. But that would have

started almost a little bit like the question in your earliest years, was there a moment?

Was this like another big life moment in your 20s that completely changed the direction of your life?

Going on TV. Yeah.

Yeah, it's weird because, and I think this happens a lot with television hosts.

The television hosts I know never set out to be a television host.

But it just happens. And that's exactly how it happened for me. In fact, I turned down my first

television show. And it wasn't until a year later that the same producer, because everyone in TV is

a freelancer, is now on a new project, which was a Channel 4 project called For the Love of Cars.

My name came up again. Because at that point I'd left the police, I'd set up a company, I was

building cars. Why? Without sort of rubbing over that, but why? Why did you leave the police and

set up a company when your family had no entrepreneurial history? I had an incident in

the police which resulted in an injury. I just had my daughter, she was now a young baby.

I'd received, I have two commendations from the police. These are a bravery. I call it stupidity.

Looking back now, I would never mature and would never put myself in that position again.

And, you know, I'm still a young guy. You know, I'm mid-20s. And there was this kind of pivotal

moment. At the time I was like, oh, this is the worst thing. And I very, very nearly rejoined the

police again. Because I was kind of lost. I didn't know what I really wanted to do. But I knew that

I loved building cars. I was now a very young parent. You know, my daughter's now 22. She's an

adult. So I'm holding this tiny little baby. Not really knowing what I'm doing. No parent knows

what they're doing until they have to do it. And I kind of had that moment where I'm like, what do

I want to do that's not going to kill me that I really love? And I just became a car builder. You

know, I rented a small space and started buying wrecks, fixing them, flipping them. You know,

I rented a cow shed. I saw it in the local paper in Hertfordshire. It was in this little rural village

called Collier's End. And Tom Pateman, that was the name of the farmer, Tom Pateman had advertised

this commercial space for rent. And it's really affordable. So I kind of drive up to the farm

and there's this shed. He just built like three, like a terrace of three sheds. And he kind of

opens the door and says, yeah, you know, you can rent this one. And I'm like, yeah, it's not really

big enough. But opposite was a brick building with a cow in it. And a metal gate. So it's just

an open building like ankle deep in cow poo. And I'm not looking at this going, yeah, I need

something about this sort of site. And I literally said, you haven't, you haven't got another place

you can put the cow. And this guy's, this farmer's looking at me like, what are you talking about?

So, well, I could fix this place up. In fact, if you let me fix this up, can you give me the first

year rent free? And this farmer, Tom Pateman, bless him, hi, Tom, said, yeah, he moved the cow.

And I went in there, cleared out the cow poo, painted the walls and built some doors,

bricked in the back, put some lights in the roof. And I was there for three and a half years,

you know, buying wrecks, fixing it, flipping it, you know, doing it myself. And that was the real,

you know, that period post police, I'd learned a lot building cars whilst being a police officer.

But after that, that was all I was doing was building cars. And, you know, that skill came

because I couldn't afford to apply an electrician. I couldn't afford to employ a mechanic. I had to

learn it. In your own words, who are you and what do you do? I'm a Porsche KM diesel from 2016.

I was engineered in Germany and provide drivers with lots of comfort and plenty of power. What's

been the hardest challenge over your mileage? Well, I'm on 72,000 kilometers on the clock and

being gloss black, the hardest challenge I have is keeping the stone chips away. Well,

that's where I know that that's untrue. I've done my research using car vertical,

as I do for all my vehicles on this podcast and found out that you've had a lot more work done

than just some stone chip touch ups. You were involved in a serious front end crash, weren't you?

And you seem to be doing a very good job of hiding it. You're not who you say you are, are you?

No, no, I'm not. How did you know? Well, by simply entering your registration or

VIN into car vertical, I used their platform and was able to uncover an entire history report on

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hidden secrets about all of my guests. Where does the mindset come from with a little baby,

a young one, to be like, oh, yes, fine, I'll just go set up my own business on a farm,

like, and leave the police. Is there a better driver than a child? Where was the confidence

behind that? Did that come from the child? I mean, if we're going to get deeply into

psychological levels, I'm sure that there was a motivator. There's no greater motivator than

trying to keep a baby fair and protected and housed. But most of population then go to stability

rather than instability. And it's arguable to say that starting a business in a cow shed

with a year's free rent, tinkering on cars is more towards instability than stability.

I mean, there is an argument for that. Yeah, I'll give you that one.

Yeah, I never really thought about it like that. I never, I never considered it.

Is it just I'm doing that?

No, because I'm not that single minded. You know, I'm very open to changes and collaboration. I

think probably because I'm almost unemployable. Like I'm just not very good as an employee.

So I've always felt driven to do stuff for myself, for my family. I've always felt

comfortable, I guess, taking risks. Well, it clearly worked because you were in there for three

years. What happened then? Well, so three and a half years in that, and it was the most amazing

experience. Looking back, it wasn't at the time. You know, I had no toilets, no heating. I can remember

going in the barn in the winter with like a balaclava. It was brutal. And I employed my first

member of staff, a local Chris, who joined then he was like, look, we can't work in a cow shed.

So I took the leap to move to an actual workshop. And I rented a proper facility and I slowly grew

a car business from there. And that's when television came knocking. And I think they came

knocking because in the car space, it's very easy to be tied to either a job, you're like,

you're a painter, or an electrician, or a trimmer, or you get tied to a brand, like you're good for

Landrovers. Whereas that guy's good for Jaguars. Whereas I never did. First of all, I did a bit

of everything because I had to. And I didn't care what car it was. Actually, that's not true. I did

care because there were some cars I hated. So I ended up getting this kind of broad experience in

different types of cars, different types of stuff, different types of skills, which for

televisions, probably a good thing. And then I wasn't just doing cars as well, you know, I'd

a friend of mine does all the props for Goodwood. So if you go to Goodwood Revival, a lot of that

paraphernalia, we always wonder about that when we go. Yeah, a lot of that's mine. Like if you go

into the GRCC, I think GRCC bar, the drinks bar, I made that. In fact, you go to Milton Keynes,

Network Rail's head office, there's a reception desk in there. I made that desk.

So you were always busy making and tinkering and working. Would you always pick? Because if you

were buying the cars, flipping them, doing them up and selling them, obviously, for TV,

for someone like Weed Adil, as Mike's always talked about, had this clip go crazy viral,

of him talking about the VW, the VWSP2, I think it was, it was like a VW Porsche collaboration.

And he's so passionate about finding a specific vehicle the world doesn't know about.

Would you always pick like the vehicles that you were more interested in and passionate about,

rather than the ones that would give you the most profit? Or were you more profit money driven in

those early years? No, in fact, if I was ultra critical of myself, I was never money driven,

and I'm still not. You know, I'll always, particularly when I was the person buying the

project, I'd only ever buy something I liked. But you won't find me buying a TR7. Ever.

Or a Triumph Stag. There'd be a few comments. Yeah, apologies, TR7 lovers. That's a bad car.

But we wouldn't find you in those cars. What would we find you in? Well, back then, I was actually

really cutting my teeth, building specials. You know, specials, if nobody out there knows

what special is, basically, you take parts from other cars and make something that doesn't exist.

So an axle from here and an engine from there and shape a body. So I was building specials,

particularly Austin 7s. So I built a lot of single seed Austin 7 specials. The wall of death car,

the one that goes around the, you know, the cars called Tallulah, because I made it and

named it Tallulah. Had it laser cut in the chassis rail. It's quite an American thing to do. The

wall of death. No, put in the cars. Well, I mean, they are nuts, but more so creating the one off

specials. Oh, no, I'm going to disagree. It's a very European thing to do. In fact, the first

ever Haynes manual, John Haynes, his first ever book was how to build a special. But then we work

because the reason I say that is because I would say that the car lovers, the traditional

petrol heads that I know, my generation, even say the UK based side, and I've got a lot of

friends in America as well. We're like OEM plus plus plus. You know, if someone changes the wheels

on their Porsche, it's like, whoa, what have you done? We're in America. It's like, you haven't

changed the wheels on your Porsche. That's what I'm getting at. Yeah, you're right to a point.

Probably the last 70 years. But the birthplace of specials, I think about, you know, those

Grand Prix cars of the 20s and 30s, the, you know, that revolution in, you know, the Bentley boys.

That period was about specials. So there's two periods in the car world that really capture me,

the 30s. So I love a single-seater boat tail special, you know, a Silver Arrow and Alfa

158, that kind of, that's the best period of racing, reckless. And then the 60s, you know,

GT cars. Why wouldn't you like a short wheelbase Ferrari? Yeah. But this period here, the 30s cars,

that's very, they were dominated by building specials. You know, and I think the Bentley

boys stories is probably one of the best examples of that. And then you've got all these kind of

crazy pioneers that built, you know, Landsby cars and, you know, oval cars and hill climbing. You

know, this country has a great history of hill climbing. So as I said, you know, John Hayes'

first Haynes manual was how to build a special. And I actually wrote the last ever Haynes manual. The

last printed published Haynes manual was my book, How to Build a Special, which kind of took the

Haynes story full circle. And, you know, that's something that I'm really proud of, because I

get a lot of people say to me, oh my gosh, I bought the book or I watched a show. And because of that,

I had a go at doing this. And this car would never have existed. Had it not been for me having that,

you know, that that piece of creativity, because restoring a car, something that already exists,

if I gave you a Matwon Golf, you could restore a Matwon Golf, but it will always be a Matwon

Golf. And yes, you could modify it, but it'll be a modified Matwon Golf. Whereas if you went and got

a chassis from here and a engine from there and an axle from there and create something that never

existed before, that's a different feeling. Because you love the metalwork side, right?

I do love bashing panels. No, I think bashing panels and gluing it with weld is my favourite.

I've said this before on here, which is I do believe blokes and that there are girls out there that

are completely contrary to this, like the digger girl who I've mentioned before. But I do believe

the average male was born to either dig or smash something up with a hammer.

Yeah, or set fire to it. At some point, they're going to do both things.

100% agree with you. Yeah, men are quite primitive.

But tell me about your state of life at that point, because throughout this conversation,

I want to kind of because you've done so much, it's important to put some little pins, put some

little bullet points along the bottom so that the audience and myself know where we're at.

So I'm picturing after that three and a half years, you're building cars,

are you like late 20s, just about to hit 30? Gosh, it's terrible to think like this, because

age is such a weird thing, like time fleets as the older you get. So I'm 46 now. I left the police

about 20 years ago, so 25, 26. So in my late 20s, early 30s, and I've been on television for 14 years,

maybe 15, I think it's 14. So that period, the work back, take 14 off 46, 32. So between 26 and 32,

God, we got there. And that would have been around the time then, 32, you've got one child?

I've two. Two children, married. Yep. And have embarked on your first ever TV project.

Yeah, my first ever project, yeah, Channel 4. Because we're going to get into Wheeler Dealers,

so many people that have watched my show before, if you're new, you might not know,

but if you haven't, if you're not new, if you're one of the regular viewers,

I've had Mike on here so many times, I've had Elvis on here. It was only right that we continue

completing the set, the trilogy, you know? Yes. And I've watched so many episodes of Wheeler

Dealers, and I love it when I see people click in and we'll get into that, because initially,

you've got so much hate for the exact opposite in people's eyes, you know, replacing someone,

not clicking. But to get to the point of being on TV, it all started at 32 after three years

in a garage. How does that happen? Obviously, you said it happened by chance, but...

Yeah, actually, it was a real chance story. So at this point, I'm renting a commercial

unit in Hartford, and I've now got staff, and we're doing renovations, and we're doing some

new builds. I was actually building recreations. I was doing a lot of Aston Martin recreations.

So I built this business up. I've got customers that are commissioning cars,

building a lot of scratch-built cars, and there was a television show locally that

shuts down an NIT station for like three months for production. Now, there was an electrician

called Peter Gillam, PJ, who unfortunately is no longer with us, who was... I had Peter for a job,

you know, one of the cars I was building, and he mentions, oh my god, I'm the electrician on this

television show off-camera to help get these cars done, and the owner of the MOT station

has just double-crossed the production company. They're supposed to go into production in five

or six weeks' time, and he's doubled the rent, and he's holding them over a barrel.

And I had this huge facility, but I was moving. I'd actually bought a farm. It was an old cannabis

farm, actually, so it'd been seized by the police. I know, right? Yeah, funny that.

Taking the possessions back. So I bought the farm and was renovating it. I'd got planning

permission to turn it from an agricultural cow farm to a workshop. So I was leaving that unit

to move here, and Peter says, oh my god, this is perfect. In fact, at the time, that unit was

supposed to have been demolished to become a car park for Sainsbury's. So the production company

can come in and do what they like. Plus, I had ramps and electricity, so Peter introduced me to

a producer with a view to just using the facility. So this guy turns up from London, my first-ever

kind of experience with somebody in the television world, you know, obnoxious brash. Oh yeah, and

all he cared about was, have you got enough power? Can I look at the fuse boxes? You know,

he was looking at lighting, taking pictures, and it was supposed to be a kind of a 15-minute

visit, and he ended up staying all day. So I get an email the next day from this TV guy saying,

look, your premise is perfect. This is great. We can just move production there, but you're

really good. You know, would you ever consider, you know, being in the show and, you know,

fix some cars and stuff? And I was just, no. So you can, which surprises me about you,

because everything I've heard up till now is yes. Yeah, I'm normally a yes person, but something,

and I'm so glad I did. I was protected. I do believe that we are ultimately protected.

And you're not an introvert. So something like TV, where you're quite extroverted, quite,

like the show. I know you love musicals, Manta Mime and stuff like that.

He does a really weird research. I do love a musical.

So I would think you would be, I can't lie, the TV comes knocking. Yeah, I'm ready.

Oh no, no opposite. Yeah. So I said no. And I moved premises that year, moved to the new farm.

They never did actually rent the place. They solved the solution or the problem with the

MOT garage. And, you know, they went on and made their show. But then a year later,

that freelancer is now on a new project, Channel 4 project. It's like, hey, you remember me?

I'm like, oh, yeah. Well, look, I'd love to come up and chat. So he actually came to the

new farm and, you know, we're established and everything's working. And he turned up with a

cameraman and spent a few hours and, you know, you know, and I was working on cars and I was

fixing some carburetors and building an exhaust stuff like that. And a couple of weeks goes by

and they asked me to come down into London and have a chat. And I walked into a production

company called Love Productions. This is a big production company. They make the Great British

Bake Off. So I walk into this sort of executive suite and there's like five or six people in

a desk and they went, watch this. And they played on the television. I guess a sizzle of me

at my farm. Is that the first time you'd ever seen yourself on camera?

Yeah, I'd never done any. I've never sat down and done any videos or ever been filmed. It's a

really interesting time just to hit pause because isn't it amazing? And there'll be a lot of like

guys in their twenties listening to this as well, people in their twenties, everybody

that think sometimes I get to twenty six and I think not life's over. It's the wrong word, but

I've already think that I've packed so much in that I've set my destiny where I'm going. If you

know what I mean, much of directory. And yet to hear that everything that you've done after that

there's so much for us to talk about, you know, wheeler dealers being one of them. But it all comes

from a moment sort of north of 30 with kids already married. It's like the thing that people don't

on the mass think is possible really. That's probably one of the biggest lessons I tell my

children who are older, they're adults now, like you can always pivot. Never set yourself a target

and be unwilling to change from that target. And you know, that's why

you know, I'm quite critical of the current education pathway. I'm advising, you know,

my 19 year old son who's just finished A Levels to Notco University. You know, it's not for everybody.

It's for some people, but it's not for everybody. You know, and I know so many people with degrees

that they just don't use. And you know, they're saddled with debts, they end up, you know,

being at university for the wrong reasons, you know, they end up partying. Like

you need to know who you are. So you're the path you choose is relevant to that and always be

willing to change. Like in anybody, you know, I can wake up tomorrow morning and go, I don't do

any more television anymore. I want to become a baker. And that's cool. That's fine. And nobody

should be criticized for that. So, you know, some of the most successful people I know

pivot in the late, you know, in their 40s, 50s. But this pivot, was it one of the best of your life?

There's two moments for me that stand out as the real, which I can say there's three, the three

moments that stand out as the real kind of wall sliding doors, leaving the police for sure.

And I very nearly went back. I'm so glad I didn't. That was the biggest moment because without that

moment, I would still be a policeman today. The second moment is saying yes to a television show.

Walking into Love Productions office and then saying, watch this, we think you're going to be

quite good on TV. They slid a contract across the table. We start filming in like four weeks,

you'd need to go get an agent. And I just said, I'll do it. I didn't even look. Oh, yeah, I'll do

it. This, this seems like fun. And then the third thing is move into America.

And that's when everything changed. So those, those three moments are probably the three most

critical sliding door, left or right path, blue or red pill. Talk to me about the end of the season,

that clip. Which season? The first ever season of television. Because what we're talking about,

Oh, for the love of cards, what we're talking about is the first time you ever saw yourself

on TV before you'd even signed a contract. But there you were on the screen in the room opposite.

How did you finish that first season, you know, the first chapter of, of you on television?

Was you like, Oh my God, I absolutely love this. And how, how different were you at the end compared

to the beginning? God, I mean, that's such a big question that I could spend the next three weeks

answering. Because these are just my opinions, right? I believe if you set out to be a TV host,

it won't work. I was a big fan of Anthony Bourdain. Like his kind of style and tone,

there was something that was really captivating about him because it was just authentic. Who was

he? He's like a TV chef. Okay, you don't know who Anthony Bourdain is. And I asked that question

for every other 20 year old. Guys, I'm out. You'd recognise him. He, yeah, I'm surprised you don't

know him. He's a New York chef. Wildlife. I grew up with Gordon. Well, he's the pioneer for Gordon.

So Bourdain used to say, if you make television that has the viewer in mind, in other words,

you're making something that you think the viewer wants to see, that's pandering.

Just make something that you really love in the knowledge that maybe one person out there might

love it. And then it's authentic. So I was in that place because I wasn't tainted by TV. I didn't

care. You know, there's no scripting. I'm not an actor. And I do love building cars. So just

press record and I'm just going to build cars, regardless. I don't care. And I didn't understand

about ratings or, you know, narrative arcs and all the stuff that, you know, I know about now.

So that first season was just this kid, wide eyed and blinded. Plus they put me with a,

you know, an iconic British actor. So all of a sudden I'm like, oh, it's like my first experience

of a famous person. And the interesting that you decide described yourself as a kid at 32.

Is that because the amount of learning that came after that doing this new whole world?

Well, yeah, you know, that's the point, isn't it? The point is the point of every adult is to

stay as young as possible. The minute you start playing, you ultimately die.

But you carried on playing and you carried on tinkering, you carried on doing stuff with cars

to just give us a run through from then to the present of some of the shows and how many

different things you've done since that catalyst moment. Gosh, blind. Well, my first show that,

you know, 14 years ago was the Channel 4 show for the Love of Cars car show. And it smashed it

straight out the gate. The show was really popular. And for those that don't know in the UK,

there's, there's some prime channels, BBC, ITV, Channel 4. So this is before, you know,

streaming became big. I then got asked to go work with BBC. But Channel 4 were like, oh,

this is great. We're going to keep doing this. So I'm now working for two rival networks. I'm

making television shows for the BBC whilst making television shows for Channel 4,

which in the TV worlds, you know, it's a bit like I'm playing for Arsenal and Tottenham

on the same weekend. In fact, I did a co-production. I believe it's the first time ever.

Channel 4 has co-produced a show with BBC. So we had two production teams, the BBC staff here

and the Channel 4 staff here. And I filmed a show that was edited one version for them and one

version for them. So I was going to ask if Channel 4 made you crash the C63.

Oh gosh, we're going to Top Gear. Well, it is interesting because my step from Channel 4 to

BBC, I ended up doing quite a few shows for BBC. I hosted engineering shows. I did some live shows.

I did a show with James May live at the BMW plant called, I can't remember what it was called.

James May in BMW. What was it called? Building Cars Live. Because this was an audition for Top Gear.

Right, what I'm talking about. Yeah, there was so, you know, around this window. So I'm now,

I've done, you know, I've done a couple of shows for Channel 4, you know, two or three,

and I've done a couple of shows for the BBC and I've had other networks send me inquiries.

And we're still going to get on guys to all the ones after that as well.

So I think as I sit here today, my current show, which I was filming yesterday, is my 28th

individual show, different show. Because although a lot of people are like, oh,

and you're the guy that does the car shows. I'm like, no, I've done house shows.

I've done craft shows, done two craft shows for Channel 4. I've done live shows, engineering

shows. Does it ever irritate you that? No, because I at this moment once when my dad was alive,

where Emma Watson walked through the door of our local pub. And one of the guys at the bar,

so make everybody listening crawl up inside, went expelliarmus as she walked through the door.

I think he'd had a couple of beers. And she went, I have done other shows.

So hence the question, because like, when you've done all that stuff, do you ever get

annoyed when it's the guy from Wheel of Dealers or? I've never really thought about it like that.

It's interesting because I can do a job and move on. And I tell what else is really interesting.

If I think about, and I got asked this recently just by someone in the pub saying,

like, what's the standout TV moment? And of course, they're kind of poised for a car story.

But I think my single most standout moment of making TV was I made a travel show basically for

BBC in China. So I got sent to China for six weeks around the Chinese New Year,

which is it was called the biggest celebration in earth. And in one of these scenes, I went to

northern China, Mongolia, and spent four or five days with a Mongolian fishing tribe

on a frozen lake called Shagan Lake. And basically this is horse drawn Mongolian fishermen.

You know, they're all in the 30s, but they look about 150 and drilling holes in the ice, pulling

out fish. And it was the most surreal experience because I'm standing on Shagan Lake. You can't see

any horizon. It's just white. There's no wildlife, no wind, no noise. You're on the moon. And

you know, I went around China doing this whole travel documentary and ended up,

you know, finishing a show in Hong Kong on Chinese New Year. And I would never get to do

wild stuff like that if I hadn't said yes 14 years ago to doing a TV show.

About cars in the UK. I know, wild. Yeah, life's funny. There is 28 different whole experiences,

chances to learn information, everything. And yet even after being the star of a million people

on Chinese New Year, I'm going to ask you about wheeler dealers because I've had Mr. Brewer in

this van several times, Elvis in this van. Both of them speak unbelievably highly of you. And

everybody kind of thinks of the show and their memories and all of that stuff so fondly. And

you know, you think wheeler dealers, you think Mike, Ed, and you think of all these names, but

it wasn't actually positive for you at the start from a reception basis, right? And I think it's

very hard. We've seen it on Top Gear over the recent years, you know, in my lifetime of

hosts trying to follow in other hosts' footsteps. It's one of the hardest things that can be done.

What was that like for you? Well, I nearly did follow in Top Gear. Like it was close. I went

to Dunsfold and auditioned and they gave me a brand new, had 60 miles on the clock, C63 AMG

estate. And I'm there, three cameras in the car doing the laps. On a track, probably the most

runoff in the UK other than on the one corner. There's like one tyre wall on one corner and I

hit that tyre wall hard, like I bent the car. On your audition at Top Gear. Yeah. Anyway,

let's gloss over this. So that's why I ended up with wheeler dealers. I said ultimately and I do

genuinely believe this. I believe that we are all ultimately protected. And these things that don't

make sense at the time are there to protect us. You know, and there's been times in my life, I'm

like, oh, that's just really outrageous. And I can't believe how painful that is. And this is

unfair. And then I realise later, oh, that's the best thing that happened. So I'm so glad I didn't

proceed on the Top Gear job. Tell me about how you did proceed on the wheeler dealers one.

Well, I'd been approached by Discovery Channel before about doing other stuff anyway. So I was

already obviously on the Discovery Channel radar. And I've been now with Discovery Channel, I think

nine or 10 years, you know, they've been my consistent network ever since. And, you know,

I was privy to some of the behind the scenes information, you know, I was made aware that

Ed was leaving, and that there was an opening. And would I consider it? And, you know, I was

always, I was great friends of Ed, great friends with Mike. And, you know, I, and I'd established

quite a good relationship with Mike at this point. And still have. I love that guy, by the way.

I like that guy is one of the most solid humans. He lives and breathes what he does that the Mike

you see on TV is the Mike you see. But the problem is you weren't just joining them on wheeler dealers,

you were stepping into someone else's legacy. Yeah, that was probably the hardest part. And

that period of my life personally was incredibly difficult. So a number of things happened.

First of all, I get offered the wheeler dealer job. And that invi and at the time it was already

in America. So I'm here living in the UK. I have two children, you know, early teens, married.

And, you know, I had plenty of options in the UK channel for still wanting to work with me, BBC

still wanting to work with me. I'd had I have opportunities to do other stuff on Discovery

channel. And I can remember coming home one day, and my, my two kids, Emily Archie and Louise,

were on the bed chatting. And I said, look, I've got this opportunity. And it means I,

we have to move to America. And I think we should have a vote as a family, but I'm not voting.

What do you guys think? And Emily says, you only regret the chances you don't take,

like we have to go. And Archie's crying. And he's like, well, I agree with Emily.

And then Louise is like, I've outvoted. So we, we went, we went as a family,

moved to California. And it was a real whirlwind. Lou and I had gone out there for just a few days

to quickly look at schools, look at houses. So we chose a house, chose schools. And we removed a

whole lives, you know, we moved as a family from the UK to England, sorry, from England,

sorry, to America. And I then embark on this, as you say, filling somebody else's boots. And that

was the most negative period. Because at this point, you know, nobody knows really what was

going on in the background. Wheel of Dealers was a beloved brand and a beloved show. Ed was

quite rightly beloved. He was brilliant on it. And, you know, people love, you know,

people love the drama. And they want to try, you know, say that this is, oh, there's a rift and

all of that. So that was the, the, the, the story that was bubbling to the, to the surface.

I also think people think they own their favorite shows. Andy, Andy Willman said to me that

he's like, we quickly realized Top Gear wasn't ours. It was everybody's never was.

And again, that's, you know, that goes back to Bourdain. You know, you're not, it's not yours.

Do something you love, but let the, you know, the viewer choose.

That's ultimately a library. Walk in and get the book you want.

So when they feel that a character, a person they love has been taken away, initially very

negative reaction. So were you going into that situation of fulfilling that role at Wheel of

Dealers, thinking that it could be negative? Or were you like, positive and just moved to

California, my whole family's here, the sun, sand, cars to work on, let's go.

I'd like to think that I'm always a glass half full person. That's my personality.

I'm, you know, I live an upbeat positive. I like to live a life of abundance.

That's just my attitude. And yes, I approach that situation in that normal. This is going to

work out. This is great. This is a positive thing. But that wasn't the opinion of the majority of

the Wheel of Dealer fans. And I would say the vast majority, the level of hate I got for taking,

because what they saw is this new guy has just taken our favorite character, you know, it's like,

you know, replacing the person on a beloved show, you know, all of a sudden this new actor.

Like, wait, what? And, you know, people get incredibly vocal about it because they feel,

you know, this is our show, as you say, you know, and Wheel of Dealer has been on for so

many years before. So you've got this generation of car people that kind of grew up with it,

you know, your children's titles. Season 17, is that right? Gosh, I don't even remember.

I think it could have been. That's crazy. You know, you think how long that show's lasted.

And it's in this like 22nd or 23rd year now. That's hard. That's hard to do. You know, not

many shows can do that. So all my loyal listeners listening on Spotify, Apple and other streaming

platforms, I urge you to do me a quick favor that you might not know that you could do. You can

actually follow if you're listening on Spotify, the Road to Success podcast, and also rate it

with how you feel these conversations have been, how they may have helped you, or if you're just

enjoying the one that you're listening to today. It really will help us if we're able to grow our

streaming platforms beyond hundreds of thousands of monthly listeners. Thank you so much for

listening to this episode of the podcast. And I really hope to bring you some more inspirational

guests soon. Let's talk me through your emotional curve with Wheel of Dealer's then. So it starts

Well, there's the positivity of moving countries. And the thing is, is California is engaging. You

know, I lived in Newport Beach, the oceans there and the kids went to, you know, great schools and

you know, Wheel of Dealer as well is this huge kind of entity. So I've never been on a production

with so many people. So you've got this, all of a sudden it's blooming in Hollywood. Like I'm like,

wait, we have all this crew and there's salmon equipment and kit. And then it kind of hit me

then. Like this is a big deal. You know, this goes out in multiple languages, in multiple countries.

And what I only ever considered is, oh, yeah, that, you know, that car show where they fixed cars

and Mike and Ed, because I'm the viewer. I'm like, yeah, you know, I love watching Wheel of Dealer's.

Um, I kind of landed in it. And it was quick, you know, from the point of saying yes and moving

to America was it wasn't a lot of space. But you obviously with Wheel of Dealer's and the difference

to YouTube, and I spoke about this with Mike before the difference we, the two different

worlds go about things is your film that series, then that series will go out where obviously

with YouTube, people will film an episode and that episode will go out at the end of the week.

So did you have a false sense of security enjoying filming all of the episodes before they actually

aired? No, it was worse. It was the absolute opposite. Because you're right. We, we would make

eight episodes, which was a traditional series. And the nature of making television is that,

you know, when you start filming, it's potentially months before the viewer actually gets to see

the first one. So in that window, I had this overwhelming barrage of hatred, because there

was an absence, the show's gone, Ed's gone. We don't know what's going on. And, you know,

Misery Loves Company. So people are like, it's going to be terrible. He's never going to be

aired. The cars are going to be crap. They've sold out to him. It's going to be American junk.

You know, and that was a criticism, you know, before I joined. Yeah, we don't want, you know,

because Wheel of Dealer's want to see Mike and Ed, Rostora, Fiesta, that's Rusty,

in a barn in Dagenham. Like that's what they want. You know, it's that kind of grounded,

humble, blue collar show. So all of a sudden, in the eyes of the viewer, it's like, you've lost

sight. Oh, you know, we don't want to see another Chevy or a Mustang. So I'd entered into this

period where I had to endure it for months, knowing that I had to keep the faith and know

that what we were building was good. Because ultimately, when it would come out, because

it would eventually come out, and then people could judge it on merit. If you like the show,

don't like the show. That's fine. But don't, don't guess between now and actually seeing it.

And that was at the same time I went through a divorce. So I was in this personal hurricane,

and a professional hurricane, you know, it's probably the first time in my life,

I'd really second guessed myself, oh my God, I've made the wrong decision. I'm in it now,

like I can't, you know, I'm getting criticised heavily by the public, I'm getting, you know,

I'm in a new country. And you know, just moving new countries, I've got no friends.

Have any ecosystem or people to lean on. And it was a really, yeah, it was really

Was that the first time that you had to become two different ants as well?

An ant that would switch himself on for television rather than arrive at work, be ready to be on

camera and just be filmed? Because the guy that they originally filmed in that office in London

was just filmed. And then you've like, Oh, that's me. Like, I didn't, I didn't turn

myself on for that film. Would you then have to turn yourself on to go into work with all that

going on away? I guess the best way to answer that question is, is there a level of performing

required to make wheeler dealers? And honest answer is yes. You know, the nature of television is

multiple takes. And, you know, there's particularly wheeler dealers, which is a show sort of packed

with information. You know, one of the things I think that makes wheeler dealers so special is

that you leave the show going, Oh, I never knew that. Because there's little facts, you know,

we love golden nuggets, we used to call them. And the kind of the only way to do that is to,

you know, prepare and say those words. So yes, there was a level of performance because the

nature of making television requires that. So it was very different to that very first show I

did where we just pressed record. You know, we're now in a completely, you know, big production

animal. Is it very hard to do that with all that stuff going on behind the scenes? Be able to

perform? The wildest thing I, you know, I recognize there was, you know, there was, I was under such

sort of emotional stress. I, I basically lost my memory. So if I watch back that first season,

I was in a wheeler dealers, I don't remember filming a lava, which is a worrying thing.

You know, the body does crazy things to protect you. And, you know, I can, I can watch that show

and be like, Oh my God, I don't remember being there. So I would obviously put myself into autopilot,

which was probably me surviving, you know, ignore the hatred. You know, I was getting death threats.

I had the bumper pulled off my car like three times on my driveway. I'd let us read a post

in my house. So you've got this huge global show and you've got this sort of percentage of people

that are, you know, I became the target of hatred because I'm the guy that replaced it.

So I just, I just remember at that time, I just kept telling myself

what we're making is good. And yeah, like I said, it's the first time I second guessed. I'm like,

I hope it's good. No, it's good. And that first car,

Ford Cosworth with the third spoiler. And I knew we had to do something out the gate that was big.

And we would always, you know, the fans would always love a Ford Cosworth, right?

But doing that because it's a controversial build. And people still talk about it today,

which is wild. Like almost 10 years later, I still get stopped in the street about that first

spoiler and it divides opinion. You know, 50% people are like that, love it and 5% hate it.

And for me, that's the perfect TV. It's supposed to be controversial and spark conversation and ignite,

you know, rifts between car people because that's the point of cars. You can't, no car captures

everybody. But when you feel a certain way and your body's protecting yourself and you're going in,

you say you don't even like mentally remember loads of it because you think you're going into

that protection. But we don't normally consult or people don't normally consult in their children,

they consult in their partner. If you were going through a divorce and had all that, hey,

who the hell would you console in? And how were you still able to act as dad?

Yeah, that was very, very difficult because I'd, you know, I've had an established

circle of friends in the UK pick up leave and I now know nobody. And, you know, California,

for all the things I love about California, and I love it feels like home.

And there is a demographic of Californians that are very,

particularly in Orange County, they love the fact that you're on TV.

And I'm the opposite of that. So, you know, you get a lot of, you know, people try and cling

on to that friend approaches. Yeah. So, and, you know, I have to be very careful in that period

because and that's what I did is I closed the door. No, I just did my job and

kind of buried myself in the work knowing that I mean it, I've got to finish this.

Did that come to a head though?

And there was a couple of times when I had real kind of meltdowns. I can remember,

I can remember turning up, we were shooting the promo actually for the first season and there

was all these catering tables out and Michelle was there and I kind of walked in and I knocked over

a table and she was like, you okay? And I'm like, no, I feel dizzy and sick and I just threw up.

So, we were making the promo with me vomiting in between. Like, I was really on shutdown,

you know, I was really sick. And everything had gone back to the UK because is this now

approaching the time it was the end of Weed Adidas? No, I was on Weed Adidas for a few years,

you know, by this time, you know, the show had gone out and it was majority, it was loved.

Is this around COVID time just to take a stop gap? No, no, this was way before COVID.

2018, 2017. You know, COVID, yeah, COVID came a few years later. In fact, Weed Adidas moved back to

the UK the year before COVID, just before. A new stage in America? I stayed in America because

by this time, I'd met a new partner, I'd had a child called Hudson who's now six and a half,

so that's a great way to date it. And Discovery were like, you know, for whatever reason, the

show's going to go back to the UK. And there was this assumption that I would be going back to the

UK. So, you know, we're ready to go back, you know, Weed Adidas, we're going to move it.

You know, was that Mike as well? Yeah, it's like a friend. Oh, you come in with me.

Well, yeah, that was the point. But Mike knew. Like, I'd had, you know, by that point, I'd read

Married. I've had Hudson. So I was, you know, I was raising a boy in California,

committed to California. And Discovery Channel were like, Oh, you're staying. Yeah, of course.

Like, this is my home. And so very luckily, they gave me alternative gigs. So I ended up

doing other shows for Discovery Channel. And I was, you know, part of the conversation about

employing Elvis, you know, and I had conversations with Elvis and, you know, we

talked to each other before he decided to take the job. So I knew that Elvis was

considered months before Elvis knew. What did you tell Elvis about stepping into someone else's

shows? Don't f it up. And he hasn't, I think he's done a fantastic job. So it sounds like in that

period of your life, multiple pressures were colliding at once. You talk about colliding with

the table. When you went into work, you felt so sick. Was that the closest thing to the moment

in your 20s, when you left the police force and didn't really know what to do? Do you think you

kind of have these life resets every 10 years? I mean, there were very different experiences.

And I've mentioned a couple of times about how ultimately, I've always felt protected,

you know, we all are, I believe. And you don't really know till you look back. And, you know,

there's been a few times in my life where you get like little nudges, like you're on the wrong

path, nudge, you're on the wrong path, nudge. And then you're not listening to me whack. And,

you know, that's the way I kind of rationalize it is I've had some wax in my life. And that period

of wheel of dealers was like this perfect storm of sort of energy that would consume me. And it

would have consumed me if it wasn't for my brother. You know, he, yeah, he really, he was really there

for me. I was going to ask you about Mike, because you speak about when you were out in the US,

not necessarily having that friendship network, it was all very new. I had no friends. I just moved

to a different country. The only people I knew were the crew. So how much time would you spend

off camera with someone like Mike? What's, what's it like you felt having that bond with someone

that you only recent years got to know? Then you spend so much time together when you work and

something like that, right? Well, I knew Mike before the show anyway. So we'd become kind of friends

per se. You know, I don't see him regularly, but if Mike phoned me, we'd go for a beer. So I was

already friends with him. And, you know, wheel of dealers is such a phenomenal sort of family

crew anyway. I mean, the two cameraman Nick and John, they'd been on it for years. Simon been on

it literally from season two. So they had this kind of established ecosystem of known people. And

I folded into that because we're all kind of like-minded people, you know, all Brit guys of a

similar age, but we have similar sense of humor. So that bit was easy. And as I started to find my

way around what was ultimately going to become home, you know, you meet your neighbors in the

street. And I joined like a local soccer team, which is always, you know, I've always leaned

into sport for many reasons. And being able to play sport in that period was a real saviour because,

you know, you feel better when you go run, like in dolphins are a real thing. So I'd found the

soccer club. I started to create a community of friends, but the nucleus of that survival was

built around the production team. You know, Nick and John, the two cameraman, absolutely instrumental

in keeping me sane. And then Mike and Michelle, they really, they really propped me up.

So is it hard to say goodbye to them when you wanted to stay in the US?

At that point, no. No, at that point, which is probably a wild thing to say. Because,

you know, move on two, three years later, I'd remarried, had Hudson and now had a

core group of friends and a football club and soccer club, sorry. And, you know,

I felt really settled and at peace in California. And, you know, when anybody knows what divorce

is like, that first window is really tough, but ultimately it does get better. So I sort of

processed the divorce part, you know, now two, three years later. And all of a sudden,

like you start to hear the mend and, you know, things move on and you realize,

you know, this was for the best and this was how it's supposed to be. And, you know, so at that

point, when I got the nod that, you know, Wheeler Dealers Discovery had made the decision to take

Wheeler Dealers back to the UK. And they're like, oh, are you ready to, and, you know, I've got to

hand it to Discovery. No, I've had a relationship with them for 10 years now. And, you know,

straight away, they said, right, well, you know, we'll find alternative shows for you.

And they did. So I went into doing other shows, staying in America. And, you know,

the casting process began. And as I said, you know, I knew Elvis was in the hat.

And I know who else was in the hat. But I knew Elvis was in the hat before Elvis knew he was in

the hat. But you were also having to co-parent between two different countries? Yeah, at that

point now, I'm very, I will only say great things about Louise. Louise is a fantastic

co-parent, the best. And, you know, I consider her lifelong one of my best friends. Like,

we communicate now. And, you know, that she's a remarkable woman. And, you know, the reason

that Emily and Archie are so amazing is predominantly down to her. She's just a great mum.

And, you know, between her and me, we managed to somehow raise two really reasonable adults. And

I'm very proud of Emily and Archie. They're incredible humans. And, you know, I've,

you know, when our divorce happened, because we'd only been in America a few months,

I'd, you know, collectively we made a decision. They went to

boarding schools in the UK before going to the US. So to stabilise the kids,

they went to boarding schools. So they would go to boarding school in the UK,

but then come to California. So Emily and Archie would come back and forth.

I would go back and forth. And we just made it work until COVID. And when COVID hit,

all travel was stopped overnight. So my second marriage was very short and it ended in COVID.

So I ended up being in this very similar place, but I was armed better because of what happened

the first time. And, you know, I was getting, you know, and it's big news in the press out there,

you know, as in every one of those glossy magazines, you know, my divorce and, you know,

shame and, you know, because for some reason there's still this stigma that it's shameful

to get divorced. I was back in this kind of whirlwind of terrible press, but now I couldn't

see my kids who are my, you know, my foundation except Hudson. And I started to kind of a rebuild

again. I got this tiny little rental place. I moved from Newport Beach to Laguna Beach,

very hippy. And I've just found myself, I gravitated towards Laguna Beach, which is

bitflops and orchards. And, you know, I then ended up having this really amazing experience because

everything shut down. COVID was so brutal for so many people. And there was this kind of peace

and silence, but in the presence of Hudson. And then we're lucky because I live now, you know,

we're talking about a period where we're the most connected the world's ever been.

So daily face times, daily zooms, communicating with the kids, knowing that I'm trapped. I can't

trap, I'm not allowed. You've spoken so many times about America and friends, like had no friends,

almost felt like you were needed to seek friends, like, ah, it sounds like you were really

needing that kind of friendship network around you. I heard you speak about the time, how you

kind of got to know Jensen, who's been a massive part of your story in recent years. You've done a

lot together. And that became more than just mates, it became business partners, it became,

you know, brothers in war. So when did you meet Jensen Button? And how did you become friends?

Jensen is one of the kindest, coolest, best humans I know. I admire that man so much because of

everything he is. He is so grounded, so kind, so funny, like the dude's funny.

And I'd obviously known, you know, I'm a British car guy growing up in this period,

so I knew who Jensen was. And, you know, our paths had crossed and, you know, our names were in

rooms because of the nature of the car industry for years. But the first time we really kind of

became friends, because we moved together to the US together at the same time. So this would be

about 10 years ago. And I went to a car show in LA, and I'm just walking around this car show.

And I hear, and I turn around, I'm like, Jensen, what are you doing here? I've just moved to America

because he was dating an American, Brittany, who's wonderful, by the way, they're now married.

And we're like, oh, I've just moved to America. So we spent the day together at that car show.

And then that kind of slowly turned into like socializing and, you know, and we've become

friends. We're in the same community, we're two Brits. And then, you know, he at that point,

he was kind of scaling back from racing, you know, this was a, you know, heading towards

potential retirement. And I think he was racing for Honda at the time, but in like saloon cars,

mostly in Japan, if I've got that right, someone's going to fact check me on that, I'm sure. But he'd

finish racing for Honda. And it was at that time, we were like, the Rafferty opportunity came up,

and I was like, Hey, JB, you know, now that you're doing less racing, do you want to look at this?

And then that's when we became really close, you know, because the nature of building a startup

like that and, you know, the intense, you know, work and connection that's needed to pull that off,

you know, forces people to thrive or fail. And what about what about that opportunity when you

say it came up, captivated you to be like, I need to do this. And that's the guy to do it with.

Um, well, first and foremost, Jensen's brilliant. Like, if you want to do something brilliant,

do it with brilliant people. And he's brilliant. So it could have been anything. I could have said,

Hey, do you want to make cupcakes out of Play-Doh? And he'd be brilliant at it. So, you know, when

you meet your people, your tribe, you realize that doesn't matter what you're doing, as long as

you're doing it together. And, you know, I've always felt that with a handful of friends and

certainly with JB.

Were you always looking for the Radford to come up though? Was it always a dream to have, if you've

worked on that many cars and you talk about banging metal and putting that chassis with that body,

was it always the natural thing to end up having your own car brand?

No, never. In fact, I'd had car brands before, you know, I built car brands and sold car brands,

you know, I'd made a reputation for myself building recreations and, you know, building

scratch-built cars I've done for years. So for me, the building side of it, it was no different.

It's not that it was no different, you know, it was a different class of car, you know, the

think back to those early specials I built in a cow shed, you know, that is a crash bang,

wallop, handcrafted, you know, relatively agricultural really, you know, mostly using

Austin 7's, you know, 1920s technology to now using, you know, state of the art, super lightweight,

multiple partners, you know, the Radford proposition is a supercar.

So what was the dream when you got into the Radford proposition with Jensen?

What was your, you talk about having a plan, you talk about having a vision,

what was that kind of plan and vision?

Well, the Radford opportunity first came about. I'd done a show called Master Mechanic.

It was 12 episodes. Super proud of that show, by the way. It was one of those shows where

very small crew, it was, you know, led by me. I wanted to do it. I was building the car anyway,

and I had to really convince Discovery Channel to let me do it. And, you know, we did it with

this bare-bones crew. And I think it was because back then we moved to Motor Trend. So that was

their kind of platform for automotive content for Discovery. So they owned Motor Trend in the same way

they own HGTV for houses and Food Network for food. Cars was Motor Trend. And I think it's the

second highest Motor Show on Motor Trend. And they didn't want to make it. You know, we made it

in 12, and it was 12 weeks. Start to finish. Episode one, I've got an idea. I want to build

my version of the first car to win an F1 race. Episode 12, I'm driving that car around Willow

Springs. Real time, 12 weeks. And by the way, in it, around episode four, I was playing football,

and I detached my bicep, came off elbowing someone. Bad tackle. So yellow card. I had this kind of

robotic eye surgery, had it reattached, and I had to wear it, but we were filming. So we owned it.

And at the end of it, Hudson was born. So I was doing it as Christina was, you know,

leading up to being in labor. So it was this kind of, it was just such an awesome show because it

was very real. You know, this is a real show. I shot a lot of it on my iPhone. So you've got this

changing TV landscape where now that's actually quite normal. It's a very kind of raw, gritty. We

broke the fourth wall. I used the camera and the cameraman helped me, you know, move the chassis

and all that kind of stuff. And I built this, this really cool special. And it did phenomenally well

for the network. So there was an obvious conversation, well, what does ball, sorry, Master Mechanic Season

2 look like? Now, around the same time, I found out in the industry that Lotus were going to kill

the petrol engine. They were going fully electric. So the Elise Exige, Evora, you know, Honeycomb,

aluminium monocoque was being discontinued. So there was a conversation with Lotus. This was

just me. Nothing to do with Raffer, just a conversation with Lotus about doing a second

season and they'd never done a heritage car. So, you know, what about doing the Esprit, the Bond car?

What about if I make one on Master Mechanic Season 2 and I'll come to the factory, we'll use your

chassis? I'm going to build a special. It's what I've been doing for years. And that then quickly

escalated into the Radford proposal. And it was so obvious this, this isn't season 2

Master Mechanic. This is season one, Radford. Because at the same time, just from an alignment

of stars, the Radford brand was available. Some of the partners we were working with on the project

were across Radford. And I then said, Jensen, like, we're almost like, we've got everything.

If you join us, we've got, you know, we've got this opportunity to actually go do something.

And so I went back to Lotus and said, let's not do an Esprit. And Lotus had built two Type 62s,

race cars. It was their race version of the Europa. And the Europa, it was this weird story

where Colin Chapman pitched to Ford for the GT40. So if you go online and, you know, edit it and

put it up there, there is a Hickman, who was the guy who designed the Black and Decker work mate.

He drew the first Europa pencil drawing that it was pitched for Ford for the GT40.

Ford said no in the end, because Chapman was coming too powerful, and they gave the gig to Radford.

So that first GT40, which is a white car with a black bonnet, was coach put by Radford.

Wow.

Lola chassis, Ford power, Radford body, then Radford went on to build all of the interiors for every

roadgoing GT40. So I'm starting to do what TV producers do, you know, dive into the stories,

you know, what's the social history story, what's the relevance of Radford, and we shouldn't be doing

a nursery. We should be doing a Europa, because that's the failed attempt for GT40. And that's a

big deal. Then we realized that Chapman had built two track only Europas. So, and he was really

good at using bits from, you know, the workshop. So he built these two Type 62s in a gold leaf,

which is the first non-automotive brand ever in motorsport. There's a cigarette brand,

Tobacco. So you've got this epic, you know, that red over white tobacco branding from a period where,

you know, smoking was associated with motorsports for some reason.

And there's only two. So we start doing the obvious thing that TV producers do.

We start finding the other two. So we've now pivoted to building a Europa.

And one of them is in Japan, where JB was racing. The other one was 10 miles from Jensen's house.

In Los Angeles. And the guy had bought it decades earlier, like out of a garden,

and just finished a full restoration. So we rock up. And there's, I'm like, literally,

we found this guy up. If you've got the gold leaf Type 62 too, this old dude, like cool dude,

we did film this beautiful scene with him. It's like, yeah, I've been restoring it for 30 years.

It's ready. I'm like, what? So all of a sudden, we've got this alignment of stars again. Jensen's

available. The cars around the corner. There's this story that associates Radford. It was so

obvious it had to be a Radford gig. So I went back to Lotus and said,

you know, it's a bigger deal now. Let's, let's make a show about Radford and Jensen's in and let's

build 62 because it's a celebration of the Type 62. So Radford was kicked off around this weird,

you know, collision of all these things happening. However, Radford

not ended is the wrong word, but it's been quiet for a period of time.

Right. I knew this was coming. I knew that you were going to ask me Radford questions.

Well, and the problem is what anybody does from a viewer perspective, when they listen to a

conversation like this, they go straight to Google, if they don't understand something,

and they say, what is this Radford thing? And they're going to be met with one of seven, eight,

nine hundred titles. Oh yeah. Yeah. We know how the press works. The top ones being

Ann Anstead's Radford Motors files for chapter seven bankruptcy amid fraud allegations missing

supercars. Radford Motors has filed for bankruptcy and Anstead's car company files for bankruptcy

after fraud claims and Anstead ordered to pay six figure sum over car and Anstead says Radford

Motors will go on despite bankruptcy lawsuits. Now bankrupt Radford Motors sued by customers

over cars and refunds they never received. Gents and Buttons, Radford Motors files for bankruptcy.

How does that make you feel? Well, on the face of it, it looks pretty bad, right?

It doesn't look great. On the face of it, it looks really bad. However,

the version that you see on Google is not what really happened.

Litigation, fake press, misleading press, seven times Radford has defeated and caught.

Seven times. Not once has that been reported. This is now a personal vendetta. He's like, what?

Can you prove it? And I'm like, yeah. Oh, this is public. He made a lie. So brazen,

it was really easy to prove. I know you can't make it help. It's like a Hollywood movie.

Ant Anstead Exclusive: The TRUTH About Wheeler Dealers, Radford Motors, Jenson Button & Divorce Pt.1

About this episode

Radford Motors

Chapter Seven bankruptcy

fraud allegations

Formula One World Champion

petrol head

Fiat X1/9

Land Rover Series I

flipping

stone chips

front end crash

VIN

Goodwood Revival

TR7

Triumph Stag

specials

Austin 7

hill climbing

Opel Manta

Wheeler Dealers

Ford Mustang

spoiler

Honda

saloon cars

recreations

F1 race

Lotus Evora

Lotus Elise

Lotus Exige

aluminium honeycomb monocoque

Lotus Esprit

Ford GT40

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