A rare Land Rover Defender currently owned by actor Rowan Atkinson is heading to auction next month.
Atkinson, who had star roles in Blackadder, Mr. Bean and Johnny English, is known for his love of cars and even owned a highly valuable McLaren F1 that the actor famously crashed twice, before selling it for an estimated £8m in 2015.
Now Atkinson is selling his prized Land Rover Defender Heritage Edition, which was one of the final models to mark the end of the production of the original Defender in 2016.
Paying homage to the original Series I Land Rover, each Heritage Edition is painted in Grasmere Green with a white roof, along with other classic touches and ‘HUE 166’ graphics, which was the number plate assigned to the first production Land Rover back in 1947.
Rowan Atkinson acquired this Defender in 2017, which is one of just 400 Heritage Edition models made, and it’s even rarer still being a long-wheelbase ‘110’ version as most were the shorter ‘90’ versions. It’s covered just 3,800 miles, with Atkinson paying to have an aftermarket tow bar, air conditioning and car alarm fitted.
Nick Whale, chairman of Iconic Auctioneers, says: “Rowan Atkinson is a well-known petrolhead and Land Rover enthusiast, so this vehicle has been cherished and lightly used as part of his personal collection. Always correctly serviced, maintained and professionally stored, it has now covered just 3,800 miles from new.”
The auctioneers have sold several of Atkinson’s cars over the years, with a 1993 Lancia Delta Integrale being sold by the company in February 2023 for £87,750.
The actor’s Land Rover Defender will go under the hammer at the historic motorsport show Race Retro, held at Stoneleigh Park, near Coventry on February 25 and has a guide price of £65,000 to £85,000.
It’s not the only famous Land Rover going under the hammer at the sale, however, as a Defender 110 5.0 V8 Bond Edition, one of just 10 sold in the UK to coincide with the release of the 2021 ‘007’ film No Time To Die, is being sold with an estimate of up to £175,000.