Don't sell "over here, too" short, though. There were some achingly pretty cars in Britain in that era, Jaguars and P-series Rovers coming to mind immediately.

For saloon cars, Jags were hard to beat for art, starting with the "Mk1" and Mk2's of the mid-late '50s through the XJ series up to the turn of the millennium. I had an XJ8 from that era, one of the Vanden Plas exec saloons sold under Daimler in the UK. I adored that car with all the senses, it was a lovely place to be, and it was a well planted, very strong, enthusiastic drive. Its only downside was the over-complexity of the electrics which I had to pay to fix rather than repair myself. A beautiful thing and a lovely drive.

As I'm getting less able to manoeuvre myself in Midgets and Spits, I had been finding myself somewhat in despair of my driving days coming to an end, but a reminder that a Mk2 Jag saloon has always been on my short-list of cars I'd love to own has me rethinking things a bit.

Of course, there are the Jag 2-seaters. When I was young, I fell for the E-type along with everyone else. What a lovely thing! It was when I actually drove one I discovered they are to be seen in, not to drive. They are cruisers, tourers; don't drive one faster than you can smile at your reflection in the shop window, for they are vile pigs at their limits. I'd have much preferred one of the predecessors, the XK-120, 140, or 150, though the fast roadster ship for me has pretty much sailed, I fear.

Maybe a well-planted saloon car will give me a few more years at it, though. It's a cheerful thought!