Driven. James Martin

      

      Driven

      James Martin

       COOKING IN THE FAST LANE – MY STORY

      This book is dedicated to all the people I’ve met, loved, lost, punched, argued with, kicked, sworn at, bought from, sold to, hired, sacked, spoken about, written about, fallen out with, hated, worked with and had a drink with. You have shaped my life and this book.

      Table of Contents

       Cover Page

       Title Page

       Dedication

Introduction

1 Skateboarding Around the Kitchen Table

2 Arcade Games and Aston Martins: The V8 Vantage

3 Boys’ Toys

4 The Castle Howard Rubbish Run: The Ferrari 308

5 Les Voitures (Merde) De Mon Pere

6 Bmxs, Bunny-Hops and Brownies

7 Bikes and Trikes

8 Philip Schofield is Definitely Not a Chicken: The Fiat 126

9 France in an Hgv

10 ‘Extra-Curricular’: The White Vauxhall Nova

       11 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

       12 A New Start in the New Forest

       13 The Car-Fanatic Father I Never Had

       14 How a Kit Car Saved My Life: The Westfield, Part I

       15 Screen Tests: The Westfield, Part II

       16 Track Days

       17 Ready, Steady…Now Don’t Do it Again: The Lotus Elise, Part I

       18 The Perils of Public Transport

       19 A Very Royal Scandal: The Lotus Elise, Part II

       20 The Audi Convert

       21 A Considered Buy: The Ferrari 360, Part I

       22 My Other Car’s a Ferrari: The Vauxhall Corsa

       23 It’s Only Metal: The Ferrari 360, Part II

       24 A Kick in the Nuts: The Ferrari 360, Part III

       25 Cars and Bond Girls

       26 Jags, Ranges, Bikes and Boats

       27 My First Oldie: The Gullwing

       28 Follow that Car! The Ferrari 355 Again

       29 The Time of My Life: The Dbs 007

       30 Strictly Knackered

       31 Miss England and the Saturday Kitchen Cars

       32 Campervans

       33 A Leap of Faith: The Maserati A6Gcs

       34 The Finish Line

       Index

       Photo

       Acknowledgments

       Copyright

       About the Publisher

       INTRODUCTION

      Most people probably don’t know about my car obsession, but it’s quite serious, and I’ve had it a long time. From my earliest memory, my life has been dedicated to the pursuit of two passions – cooking and motors. To be honest, I can’t remember which came first; the two have always gone hand in hand. As a kid, I was either helping out in the kitchens of Castle Howard, where my father was catering manager, or driving a tractor around the fields of our farm. If I wasn’t flambéing chicken livers at catering college, I was circling Golf GTis in AutoTrader and dreaming of Ferraris. And if I wasn’t working 18-hour shifts in some of the most punishing kitchens in London, I was spending what little I’d earned on some ridiculous kit car with no roof and big shiny exhaust pipes. Every job I’ve ever had has been to finance wheels of some description. I know that most people associate me with cooking, but for people who really know me, cars are probably the first thing that spring to mind. Put it this way: I’ve got a beautiful big kitchen at home, but my garages, all three of them, are more impressive. My whole life has been wrapped up with cars in some way. Knowing that, it’s easier to understand why this has been one of the most monumental years of my life. This year has seen the realisation of one of my dreams. This year I took part in the world’s ultimate road race.

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