HARD to believe someone would order a very special car to be built, pay for it – and then forget all about it.
But that’s exactly what happened to Noel Gallagher, who with his brother, Liam, formed rock band Oasis back in 1991.
Oasis record sales took off massively, the band toured the world and the often-warring brothers became wealthy before they each went their own way.
What happened next was revealed when Noel sat down with his old mates Radio X presenters Matt Morgan and Gordon Smart before his 2025 Heaton Park show to roll out the anecdotes.
Gordon asked the superstar what his most expensive mistake was, to which Noel, after thinking for a moment, replied: “My £110,000 Jaguar. I think it’s got 12 miles on the clock and just sits in the garage. It’s been there since the 90s.”
Gallagher explained he bought the sleek sports sedan with the spoils of his run of hit albums, from Definitely Maybe (1994), (What’s The Story) Morning Glory (1995), through to the massive seller Be Here Now (1997).
“I thought when I became a fully-blown rock star, I was gonna need a car,” he said.
“I’d heard about this firm that buy old vintage car chassis and put a modern car inside them. So I got a Mark 2 Jaguar from 1967, the year I was born.
“But they take about 18 months to two years to build, so I thought I’ll easily will have learned to drive in two years.”
You can see where this is going, can’t you?
Noel went on: “I was in the kitchen one day and this low-loader pulled up outside the house with this car on the back.
“I was putting the kettle on, thinking: f…ing lovely car, that. I’m gonna get one of those, one day. And the guy knocked on the door and said Mr Gallagher? Your car!
“I’d forgotten that I’d bought it!”
He revealed that his then wife Sara MacDonald took the unique Jag out for a spin — the first time the car saw fresh air in two decades.
“She just drove it the once and said, ‘How long have you had this?’”
“We just happened to be near the garage it was in. It was like going to visit an old auntie. Let’s go and have a look at the Jaguar!”
Asked by Matt and Gordon if he’d ever considered learning to drive in order to enjoy his car, Noel admitted: “I’d be too impatient. Even when I’m in the back of a car, I’m on the verge of getting out, in traffic and just going up to people and knocking on the window and saying ‘You f…ing moron!’”
And no, Noel never did drive the Jaguar, nor did he ever get his driver’s licence.
However, someone who did get behind the wheel of the classic car, restored by the famed Vicarage company in Lancashire, was Hagerty’s Antony Ingram:
The work is seriously impressive in the metal, to the extent you’d be hard-pressed to tell it wasn’t factory if you didn’t already know Jaguar never made a MkII drophead itself.
The body sides are as smooth as glass and the front doors expertly lengthened into the space vacated by the rear ones – and they open and shut with precision and come with the benefit of central locking.
Then there’s the hood, which fits snugly against the header rail and neatly replicates the original roofline, and once you undo the catches either side of the rail, is electrically retracted, ready to be hidden by a tonneau cover.
Vicarage retrimmed the cabin in a vibrant red to contrast with deep black exterior paintwork – a proper rock’n’roll combination.
With the Ford-sourced electric window and roof switches, a modern single-DIN head unit and a three-spoke Personal steering wheel (the only element I’m not overly keen on, with its faux-carbon-fibre centre) there are clearly non-original touches, but the driving environment with those large dials, four smaller gauges and rows of toggle switches (subtly and handily labelled), still feels suitably vintage.
And while Vicarage overhauled the car’s 3.8-litre mechanicals, including the fitment of an automatic gearbox and power-assisted steering, there’s no sign to the lay enthusiast that anything is out of place or non-original, even when you pop the bonnet and see your reflection in the gleaming rocker covers.
Externally, the only real clue is the oil cooler you’ll spot behind the grille – one of Vicarage’s touches to improve reliability.
The inline-six fires near-instantly on a press of an innocuous black starter button.
Today we’re probably stretching the MkII’s legs more than it’s had the opportunity to for a while. Gallagher only took the car for a spin once during his ownership, with wife Sara MacDonald at the wheel.
Jaguar Land Rover Classic acquired the car in 2022, and it was used in the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
There’s a piece of paper in the car’s centre armrest cubby confirming its attendance, along with a small, red leather-bound A-to-Z, matching the interior trim.
Further poking around reveals the owner’s handbook, though the largest handbook inside the car is the one for operating the stereo.
Speakers hidden in each corner of the interior hint at reasonable audio quality, but it’s the straight six’s twin tailpipes that provide today’s soundtrack.
It’s surprisingly vocal, particularly as it echoes off parked cars, tunnels, and other roadside furniture, though the auto ‘box and long gearing take some of the urgency out of both the engine note.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of this drophead conversion is how solid the car feels, with minimal scuttle shake, and how faithfully it tracks around corners.
The ride quality helps, not just the car’s tall vintage-style tyres but also the suspension upgrades fitted by Vicarage, including coil springs over dampers in place of the factory leaf springs.
It hangs on through quicker corners too.
Avoid Goodwood-style antics and it’s much easier to appreciate how easily you’re able to clip along with minimal effort – very Jaguar.
Gallagher spent £110,000 on the car back in the late 1990s. It then sold for around £125,000 in 2022, and with Jaguar Land Rover Classic it’s up again, wearing a tag of £144,950 – still less than the near-£200k, inflation-adjusted, that the singer paid.
This Cool Britannia cat is so much more desirable than any inflated-value Elvis Caddy or Elton John Rolls.
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