A car once owned by the Queen Mother has been hidden away in a Pontllanfraith garage for more than a decade after an unsuspecting resident bought it for £2,000 from a friend.  

Trevor Lee purchased a wreck of a Jaguar Daimler DS420 in 2011 but he had no idea of the story behind it.

Speaking to Caerphilly Observer, Trevor said: “My friend bought it for £4,000 and had no idea about the car’s past.”

“I just didn’t know what to think. I knew this model only went for around £2,500 and it was in a bad condition so I knocked him down on the price.”

As the car sat idle in the newly extended garage with a seized engine, torn interior and damaged body work, Trevor’s late wife, Cheryl, made it her mission to find out the car’s history.

“It had all the hallmarks of a royal car. The blue lights, the custom dials, the car itself was two feet longer than the standard Daimler, it was strange.

“Cheryl couldn’t understand how a car that had done 45,000 miles had never paid tax or had an MOT – it didn’t make any sense.” Trevor said. 

He added: “She was on the phone to Jaguar and several other people who could help for three weeks. Without her none of this would’ve been possible.”

Jaguar reluctantly confirmed that the car was produced for the Queen Mother in 1986, with the intention of it returning to their museum upon her death.

Jaguar told Trevor and Cheryl how the car had remained with the Queen Mother until 1991, where it was then given to the Mayor of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames after the royal colours, black and burgundy, were removed for plain black.

Trevor joked: “When the friend who I bought it off found all this out he made me an offer of £17,000 to get it back. He wasn’t too happy when I said no.” 

Caerphilly Observer contacted Jaguar Heritage for more information on the car. Other than confirming that the vehicle is not in its possession, it too is unsure how the vehicle ended up on the open market.

This wasn’t the only Daimler that Jaguar had misplaced however, according to Trevor: “20 years ago, one of the four DS420s that the Queen Mother owned was sold at auction.

“It went for £120,000 to an American after someone else in the UK unknowingly bought it for cheap.”

Trevor noted how reluctant Jaguar was to admit it had lost the car, with Cheryl’s determination the only reason why they gave in.

When Cheryl passed away in 2017, Trevor found it difficult to face the car and commit himself to repairing it.

“It took me months to go back into the garage,” he said. “Tina, my daughter, reminded me that I made a promise to her that I would fix it up.

“Me and Cheryl used to work on the cars together. We’ve had several classic cars over the years and I couldn’t imagine doing it without her.”

Tina told Caerphilly Observer how her dad had never put a date on completing the project, but when she mentioned the possibility of a Jubilee celebration at Markham Community Centre on June 4, Trevor insisted he would have it done by then.

Trevor said: “I actually finished it three weeks ago. It’s perfect timing and I know a lot of people in the community will be keen to see it.”

“It took a while to get permission from Jaguar to repaint the car in the Royal colours, as well as adding the official stickers,” he added.

This will be the first and last time that the former royal limousine will be displayed in Wales, as Trevor got in contact with the UKTV television show Bangers and Cash – a car show which specialises in historic car auctions.

“We expect it to go in the region of £130,000. It’s just one of those crazy once-in-a-lifetime things. I think it’s great for Wales to have a piece of history like this.

“It only cost me around £6,000 to fix up so not a bad investment” he added.

The Queen’s Jubilee celebrations will be at Markham Community Centre car park on Saturday June 4, from 10am to 4pm. All proceeds from the event, which will include stalls, a tea party and music, will go to the animal welfare charity RSPCA.

Trevor said: “Cheryl always loved animals. I want this to be in her name.”