91-year-old former Lancashire detective back behind wheel of rare MG MGA Roadster police car

John Clark, 91, who rose to become a Chief Superintendent in Lancaster, was reunited with an MG MGA Roadster at the Lakeland Motor Museum in Cumbria - the type of rare police sports car he first drove way back in the 1960s! The Museum exhibit was one of a small number of MGs supplied to the Lancashire Constabulary for traffic patrol and training duties over 60 years ago. John drove one of the fleet during his Advance Driver Training in 1962.

Here’s 16 pictures of this classic car shows in Avenham Park

“They were happy days!” said John who joined the police in 1956. “It was a beautiful car back then and it’s still a beautiful car now. They had only just come out when I first got behind the wheel of one of them so they were brand new. It’s hard to believe they are now a museum piece – time flies!” 

John, originally from Lossiemouth in Scotland, only joined the police following a dare with a mate when they saw a Lancashire Constabulary recruiting bus while visiting a football match in nearby Elgin. He said: “We both decided to do the entrance exam there and then and passed. I never saw the football match.”

He went on to become a senior detective, served with the Regional Crime Squad and was awarded the Lancashire Constabulary’s William Garnett Cup for Bravery – after capturing an armed criminal following a roof top chase. He ended his career as a Chief Superintendent in Lancaster. He retired in 1986 and still lives in Darwen near Blackburn.

He remembers the MGA Roadsters fondly. “When we first arrived at the police driving school we saw all these officers sitting in them with their sunglasses on smiling!” said John. “I was well oversix feet tall so it was something of a squeeze to get in. But they were lovely cars to drive. It was a bit easier to get behind the wheel back then than it is now I’m in my 90s!”

The engine was known to be temperamental. But the cars could go from 0-60mph in 12.2 seconds – reasonably quick for that era and good enough to keep in touch with many lawbreaking motorists. The top speed was 110 mph and they did 27 miles per gallon. In Lancashire, the MGA Roadster police cars were divided into white (A Class) and black (B Class) contingents. They had uprated running gear that was similar to the 1600 Deluxe model but with drum rear brakes instead of discs and bolt on steel wheels. After his retirement from the police, John went on to become Superintendent of Darwen Market for many years. Serving in the police is a family tradition. He met his wife, Megan, at the police regional training centre in Warrington. They had two sons and a daughter – all of whom went on to serve in the police force.