James Martin’s ultra-rare Alfa Romeo was among the standout lots at RM Sotheby’s highly anticipated Woodcote Park Auction on Wednesday 8 July, following an ambitious restoration project costing almost £90,000. The celebrated chef and classic car collector’s beautiful one-off design attracted attention after its painstaking return to the condition it deserved.

The Alfa Romeo’s story formed part of a wider celebration of exceptional cars at RM Sotheby’s Royal Automobile Club Concours, which once again brought together some of the world’s finest machinery and the enthusiasts behind them. Meanwhile, former Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond joined a panel of distinguished designers to award the event’s top honour to a distinctive Jaguar C-type

A standout attraction – eventually selling for £314,375 – the show-stopping coachbuilt Alfa Romeo 1900 Speciale was one of the headline consignments at the prestigious 2026 Royal Automobile Club Concours. It featured alongiside some of the world’s finest cars, from veteran and vintage to classic and racing, as well as motorcycles spread across Surrey’s rolling green hills.

In addition to the concours entries, special feature displays saw over 200 rare and eclectic cars spanning over 100 years of motoring history, accompanied by special anniversary tributes, fascinating engines, historic motorcycles and some of today’s most desirable supercars.

James’s handcrafted 1976 Alfa Romeo Sports Coupé model is among the rarest Italian coachbuilt cars in existence, with the vintage vehicle the subject of a meticulous and deeply personal six-year restoration programme overseen by James himself. “It’s a beautiful thing and I love it!” says the motoring enthusiast chef, who acquired his captivating car in 2018. “It holds a very special place in my heart.”

The sale of significant collector automobiles adds an exciting new dimension to the award-winning Concours, with the TV chef’s exceptional retro masterpiece believed to be one of just eight examples built by revered Italian coachbuilder Autotecnica del Lario (ATL).

A very small boutique carrozzeria (coach-building company) formerly based near Lake Como, Lombardy, fittingly for such a stunning part of Italy, ATL produced some of the ‘golden era’s’ finest sports cars, earning a reputation for creating attractive automobiles in extraordinarily limited numbers.

“One of only a handful ever made, they produced these from the late ’60s to the early 70s, this one being a later model,” James reveals. “It’s everything that I love about Italian cars.” Featuring unique design details and distinguishing characteristics, he says each car varied. “Some fins are slightly different, but the back end is the same on all of them.”

The super-rare, seldom-seen coachbuilt car, which you almost certainly won’t find at any other motoring event in the world, also sports influences from other ’50s/’60s cars, complete with components reminiscent of the Aston Martin DB3. The chef’s curvaceous car underwent a complete strip-down, seeing bespoke bodywork, chassis and mechanical components, plus new twin-Weber carburettors fitted to the engine. 

“Every single part’s been taken apart and remade or restored, all tailormade for this car,” explains the avid automobile collector. “It’s been a challenge because we did it properly, with total attention to detail nose-to-tail. It’s clean on top and just as clean underneath.” You can’t buy these parts off the shelf, resulting in these often-bespoke automotive treasures rarely coming to market.

“The guy in charge of the restoration has looked after my 275 and other cars in my collection and XF 1 mechanics worked on it, too. So, real attention detail, with everything specifically made. That’s why it took four-and-a-half years.”

James’s ATL Sports Coupé’s handcrafted aluminium coachwork pays homage to the legendary racing Berlinettas of the 1950s and is constructed over a lightweight Superleggera-style, tubular steel ‘birdcage’ chassis, built to Alfa Romeo 2000 Sportiva specification.

The ultimate boys’ toy, the celeb chef’s coveted car boasts a 105 series Alfa Romeo engine and all the running gearbox, but that’s where the Alfa Romeo component of this particular ATL ends; everything else is completely bespoke.

Powered by Alfa’s celebrated twin-cam engine, producing more than 100bhp, combined with the coupé’s kerb weight of less than 800kg, it delivers an agile, engaging and highly rewarding driving experience.

“It weighs nothing, you’ve got a 2.0-litre engine in there and it goes really, really well,” says the much-loved chef. With its ’60s feel, this early-mid ’70s car owned by the renowned car enthusiast could be 15 years older. “It’s a beautiful-looking car, it sounds fantastic and it’s a great car to drive.”

Inside, the exceptional motor boasts a classic ’60s sports GT touch, complete with a diamond-quilted cover over the transmission tunnel and sills. “That was a standard finish when they did it in period. Internally, I wanted to keep that nice, rich 1960s look, so we went for a dark chocolate tan leather.”

With only around eight produced, this sensational car is extremely rare. Evocative and beautifully restored, its unique coachwork coupled with its fascinating backstory drew ample attention at the show.

Classic car fanatic James was won over when it originally came up for sale. What caught his eye with the ATL?

“Well, I’m a big 60s fan and a lot of my private collection is from then, Ferraris in particular. The ’60s were iconic in terms of styling and you could still see a lot of that in this car. The back end appealed because it was a 250 Short Wheelbase; my favourite car ever made. And I love the wide wheel arches. It’s just got that look to it.”

Along with the 60s styling, the colour was important. “It was red when I bought it, but we wanted that lovely Alfa red tone, and that matches with the interior.”

“Initially, the roof was flat, and I wanted to keep that ’60s’ feel, adding a Zagato-style ‘double-bubble’ top to make it more usable and easier for people to drive. I think collectors now want a classic car they can use. I’m 6’3” and can fit in it. It’s a squeeze but I can drive it!”

“It’s a very, very special car. I’m sad to see it go.”