Five-times British champion Jimmy McRae turned the clocks back when he entertained the spectators on last weekend’s Lombard Rally.

McRae and co-driver Ian Grindrod, from Blackburn, were reunited with the Opel Manta they drove to victory on the 1983 Ulster Rally.

The pair were invited to drive the car as part of a series of demonstration runs on the four-day event by the car’s owner, Oswaldtwistle businessman Gary Gee.

McRae and Grindrod used the distinctive Rothmans-liveried machine on the ‘Colin McRae Selectif’ in Scotland, whilst Gee drove the car himself on a demonstration run through the Yorkshire Event Centre at Harrogate with Grindrod alongside.

“I think Jimmy enjoyed himself, he said it was just like putting an old pair of shoes!” said Gary.

“He did three runs through the Forrest Estate near Castle Douglas, which was so rough it broke the bonnet pins.”

Torrential rain turned the Harrogate stage into a quagmire, but failed to dampen the spirits of spectators and competitors alike.

“It was more like autocross than rallying but quite fun. Ian reckoned it was just like sitting alongside Ari Vatanen, but I think he may have been joking!”, said Gary.

In the main event, almost 60 cars and crews from all over the UK tackled a series of ‘selectifs’, or stages, in North Yorkshire and Scotland, starting and finishing in Harrogate.

And three East Lancashire crews were vying for victory in the historic section.

Barnoldswick driver Kevin Clark set the early pace in his Hillman Avenger Tiger, with the Alfa Romeo of Ken MacEwan, from Slaidburn, third and Kelbrook garage owner Ross Butterworth tenth in his Ford Escort.

Clark maintained his lead up to the first overnight halt at Glasgow, whilst Butterworth and navigator Ali Proctor climbed to seventh despite going off in Stang forest and needing a tow out from fellow competitors Stuart and Linda Carriss.

The husband-and-wife pairing took over the lead of the historics at the Loch Fyne lunch halt when Clark lost time off the road.

A broken stub axle put paid to any hopes of victory for Clark and navigator Tom Leeming, from Pendle and district motor club, and they had to settle for eighth overall at the Harrogate finish.

"It was a disappointing end to what was a very physically tough event, we were on the road from 6am to 11pm every day," said Kevin.

"But at least we had the consolation of collecting the team award with Ross and Stuart."

Butterworth, leading at the Moffat time control on Saturday night, slipped back to fifth by the finish, two places behind MacEwan and John Ingham in their Alfa Romeo.

Overall victory in the historics went to Jack Curran and David Bardwell in a Lancia Coupe Rallye, with Nigel Bramall and Roger Close winning the main Endurance Rally in their Vauxhall Corsa SRi.