Story and History

1935 Bentley 3.5 Owen Sedanca Coupe by J Gurney Nutting - Restored condition

I first knew of this car whilst lunching with my chum, Ivor Silverstone

We used to occasionally lock swords when buying or selling cars together - he would also chuckle as we got nearer to the conclusion of our deal. Often he would scribble an outline of the car we were discussing on the knapkin at the restuarant - he was always useful with a pen

Ivor was a formidable gentleman, very tall and had many stories to tell (he opened the Val Bonne nightclub off Regent Street in the 60's for instance) and he had an fabulous eye for coachbuilt Bentley's and restored many - some of which we sold through the portals of Jack Barclay, as we did with this Derby

I recall a Speed Six, which was just gigantic and then followed a very graceful James Young open tourer, in duck egg blue

Here, his knowledge for pre-war cars was encyclopaedic and his 'eye' for beauty and art made his restorations a cut above of the norm

The Sedanca here offered, was another of his sensational creations - the Sage Green bodywork complimented with beige for the interior making the flowing lines even more beautiful than the normal dark blue or even black often seen

Cranfield (those who know, know) were entrusted for this restoration, just as Ivor had used them before and the quality of their work can be seen here in the showrooms

J Gurney Nutting were acknowledged as one of the best Coachbuilders pre-war, they were Royal Warrant holders with orders being placed by a number of members of the British Royal Family, including the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) the Duke of York (later King George VI) and the Duke of Kent

The Owen Sedanca Coupe was possibly their most stylish and covetable of designs

Ivor and I added a few details, like the windscreen mounted driving lamp and generally finished off the works before displaying her in the central window of the showrooms in Berkeley Square

We soon found a new home for her, where she was transported to the new owners holiday home in the South of France

We purchased her for a second time in 2000, when she was sent to another holiday home abroad in the sunshine

In 2008 our friends at P & A Wood offered her for sale and the last owner purchased her from them at that time

Not having seen her for 17 years I can confirm that she is still running beautifully and looking as graceful as any Hollywood star in period we could name

One of the few special cars and we feel lucky to be part of her life again