1987 Bristol Brigand - Ex-Will Young

In 1961 Bristol Cars launched the 407, beginning the long-established British company's partnership with American V8 engines, which in this case came from Chrysler. Bearing a close resemblance to its predecessor, the 406, the new car not only had a powerful 5.1-litre V8 installed, but a number of chassis and styling revisions went some way towards re-establishing Bristol as a builder of true high-performance motor cars.

After the 407, the marriage of the sleek and stylish Gentleman's Express and the less than sophisticated big V8 continued through a further five iterations of the 400 Series until the arrival of the 603 in 1976. This was the first major facelift since the late 1950s, with the new car boasting a more streamlined design and more room for passengers than any Bristol before it. The original 603 was offered with a choice of a 5.2-litre V8 engine in the form of the 603E, and a larger 5.9-litre unit in the 603S. As the effects of the fuel crisis of the mid-1970s softened, the 603 Series II arrived in their Kensington Showroom with the 5.9-litre engine becoming standard across all models and a revision of the headlamp cluster giving the car a much more modern look.

Introduced in 1982, the 603 Series III acknowledged Bristol's distinguished aeronautical past by using the names of famous aircraft, the 'Britannia' and the 'Brigand', for the new model. Hand built in aluminium in traditional coachbuilding fashion, the Brigand utilised a Rotomaster Turbocharger unit to increase power and give the car a top speed of a 150mph. A bulge in the bonnet was necessary to squeeze the turbocharger in and the car had alloy wheels fitted as standard. At around £50,000, the Brigand attempted to justify its rarefied price tag by offering superbly finished, understated coachwork, a sumptuous 'Gentleman's Club' interior with acres of Leather and Walnut, and that very British quality, exclusivity.

This particular Bristol Brigand was supplied new on 26th April 1988, registered E693 FLD, to its first owner, a Mr. D.Holland in London and was originally finished in White with a black leather interior. Mr. Holland evidently enjoyed driving his new Bristol, as his 1,000-mile service was completed only two weeks later. Invoices in the file show annual services during his care, until October 1991 when Bristol Cars re-purchased the car, by which time it had covered 29,301 miles. The car remained at Kensington High Street until early 1993 when it was sold to its second owner, a Mr. D.Starkey.

The comprehensive service records in the history file from Bristol Cars show a string of further owners and a body colour change to Deep Burgundy before this Brigand was purchased in August 2009 by none other than 'Leave Right Now' singer and Pop Idol winner, Will Young. Upon his proprietorship, Mr. Young had Bristol cars complete a full respray in Grey and a re-trim of the interior in Oxblood hide, along with a host of other jobs on the car, in exchange for the not inconsiderable sum of £26,000. A national newspaper article from 2010 shows Will Young, looking rather dapper, and standing proudly by his freshly completed Bristol Brigand, citing his grandfather as his inspiration for his love of classic cars and Bristols in particular.

However, in October 2010, two Bristol mechanics were sent to Mr. Young's Holland Park address to recover the Brigand and investigate the lack of oil pressure upon start up. Back in the Brentford workshop and after doing a compression check and removing the cylinder heads, it transpired that the pistons had picked up in the cylinder bores and caused significant damage to the engine due to lack of oil. The engine and gearbox were both removed and a new 5.9 litre V8 unit sourced from the factory, whilst the gearbox was rebuilt before being mated to the new power unit and installed back into the car. The new engine was tested and run-in by the team at Bristol before returning the car to Mr. Young, who was now some £7,000 lighter!

A mutual friend, of both Will Young and our vendor, facilitated the sale of the car in January 2012, and this Brigand was then sent to Bristol specialists, Brabazon Motors, where it was to have lots of remedial work done at a cost of almost £3,000. Always in search of perfection, our fastidious vendor decided to have the car fully resprayed once again, entrusting the respected Aston Martin and classic car specialist 'Spray-Tec Restorations' to carry out the work. All the brightwork, glass, mouldings and interior were removed and the car was chemically stripped to bare metal. Corroded aluminium was cut out and replaced where necessary, and the bodyshell was prepared to receive paint. When ready, etched primer and high-build primers were applied and flatted, before the car was finished in Aston Martin Black Pearl. Re-assembled and given a final polish, the bill from the celebrated restorers was just shy of £28,000, indicative of the standard of finish achieved. Documented photographically from Spray-Tec, a CD accompanies the history file.

Supplied with a comprehensive history file including a UK V5c, this car is thought to be one of 15 or so surviving Bristol Brigands and, in this condition, with celebrity provenance, you will struggle to find a better one.