I was driving on roads at 12, says Top Gear’s Paddy McGuinness
PADDY McGUINNESS has revealed his first motoring experience came aged just 12 when his father let him drive the family car on public roads.
The 45-year-old comedian admitted his father let him drive the family car near their Lancashire home.
The new Top Gear presenter, who is filming the 27th series of the long-running BBC motoring show, joked that he could not condone his own behaviour.
The Take Me Out host said: ‘Back when I was a young lad, I’m not condoning this, but there wasn’t as much traffic on the roads.
‘My dad used to drive a Hillman Avenger, and he would take me on the road driving that. ‘So I was driving when I was about 12, 13 on the public roads, which were kind of desolate back then. Now it’s just ridiculous.’
McGuinness, a long-standing Top Gear fan, said his first car cost £90 and was deemed a ‘death trap’ when he took it in for an MOT. He said: ‘The mechanic came out and he went “whose is the Escort?”. And I went “mine”, he went “f****** death trap”. I thought to myself “it hasn’t passed, has it?”.’
The new series will include McGuinness racing his co-presenters Freddie Flintoff and Chris Harris around a track in electric cars — with each collision sending a jolt of electricity through the driver’s body.
In another episode, McGuinness tries to convince his co-hosts that a funeral hearse could be used as a family car.
McGuinness and Flintoff replace ex- Friends star Matt LeBlanc and Rory Reid, whose final run as presenters began on BBC2 on Sunday night.
Author: Alex Green
