Through the 1920s, Basil Davenport terrorised bigger and more expensive cars in his GN Spider special and, 100 years later, current owner Jim Edwards is continuing that tradition. Having accepted the challenge of rebuilding Spider’s Frazer Nash V-twin engine for previous owner David Leigh, Edwards was the obvious candidate to take over Spider when Leigh decided to sell it around four years ago.
Based in an old mill building in Middlewich in Cheshire, Edwards is something of a throwback to another time. He is a gifted and intuitive engineer who has built an enviable reputation for his work on pre-war cars and engines and is the ideal enthusiast to be the latest custodian of this outstanding piece of speed event history. The car is still road legal and Edwards has been known to startle a few locals with a quick test run up Middlewich’s high street.
