Truck & Driver UK – September 2019

(^12) August 2019 Truck & Driver
EDITOR’S CHOICE
interesting, that’s for sure.
When loaded with scrap
the trucks will run at 44
tonnes, so the big power
outputs come in handy and Lee
has become very accustomed to
the luxury of 700hp-plus.
“I drove one of the 500hp
Volvos the other day and
discovered a load of hills I had
forgotten existed! What’ll be
interesting is finding out how the
S730 compares on fuel –
depending on the work, the Volvo
does 7-7.5mpg. It’s difficult to
judge an exact figure as the type
of trailer can influence it too.”
The S730 is now pretty much
ready to go to work; the truck,
ordered in 2018, would have
been on the road sooner had not
Lee’s wife Angela, who worked in
the office at Davidson’s, sadly
passed away after an illness.
Jamie has created a tribute to
Angela in the office where she
sat, and also commissioned Matt
to paint a mural in her memory
on the rear lockers of the Scania.
“I always called her ‘My Angel’,
and it’s nice to have that in the
cab, to have her looking down
upon me,” says Lee.
While the rest of the trucks
have been treated to the full
Special Interiors of the
Netherlands retrim, the Scania
remains mostly standard for now

• which is testament to the
  quality of standard trim provided
  by the manufacturer. Lee has
  added some Damar custom mats
  though, and a bull-bar is on the
  way for the front end too.
  Only Fools and Horses is a
  genuine British institution, and
  Matt has done a phenomenal job
  in detailing a gallery of the

show’s characters and famous

scenes across every available

surface of the truck. There’s so

much more to the artwork on the

truck than simply drawing Del

here, Rodney there and so on.

On the day of the photoshoot we

walked round it several times and

noticed various small details we

hadn’t before. Can you spot the

picture of Del hang-gliding?

Serious research

It’s bright, colourful and so many

of the scenes are instantly

recognisable – some less so. We

actually had to purchase a

couple of books on the series to

get some background details and

identify some of the less-famous

characters. There’s all the usual

supporting cast; Boycie, Marlene,

Trigger, Grandad and Uncle

Albert. And some less well

known, such as dodgy detective

Jack Slater (played by the now

famous actor Jim Broadbent), who

appeared in just three episodes.

There’s the Reliant van and

the Capri, of course, plus famous

scenes such as Batman and

Robin and a seething Rodney in

the Groovy Gang. To our mind,

the most impressive piece of art

of all is the picture of Del on the

nearside; wherever you stand,

he’s looking directly at you.

It’s such a universally popular

and enduring TV show that we

reckon the truck will get more

attention than any of those

preceding it. If you see it at a

show, take some time to have a

good look around it because it

really is a work of art in every

way. Make no mistake, it’ll be

going to work – but for the

moment, it’s time to enjoy it.

“It’s such a universally popular and enduring

TV show that we reckon the truck will get

more attention than any of those preceding it”

The TV show got its name from an old cockney saying, ‘Only fools and horses work for a living’