If you know who Shane FIlan is (no one in the C&SC office did), your interest in one of the lots Bonhams will be auctioning at its Goodwood Revival sale (16 September), will be even greater than for everyone else who just lusts after Aston Martin DB5s.
Wearing an big estimate of £250-300,000, the 1964 Aston is currently owned by FIlan, who is part of Westlife (that's a so-called boy-band apparently), but was repatriated some years ago from Kuala Lumpur where it was sniffed out by marque specialist Desmond Smail.
Bonhams says: "It was in need of full restoration and was re-imported to the UK several years ago and sold to singer Shane Filan of the Irish pop group'Westlife' – who bought it as a 30th birthday present to himself – as a project car to be restored by Desmond Smail to the client's specification.
"The restoration has taken almost three years to complete and was viewed by Shane several times during the process. Works undertaken include a full body-off rebuild: powder coating the chassis; new doorframes and outer skins; and re-bodying in places with new steel where required, the roof and boot being retained. Recognised specialist Bodylines carried out the bodywork restoration, while repainting in Silver Birch was entrusted to specialist Lone Pine Garage.
