IAN Ogilvy is most famous for playing The Saint on ITV.

As Simon Templar in the role previously held by Roger Moore in the 1960s, Ogilvy was a suave and sophisticated crime fighter who drove a gleaming white Jaguar XJS. The Surrey-born actor studied at the famed RADA and has many stage and screen appearances to his name. Now living in the USA, in more recent times he has been seen in Baywatch, Babylon 5 and Melrose Place. He is also an accomplished author, having penned a series of childrens’ books. He has a new film out in December - a British gangster movie called We Still Kill The Old Way, in which he plays the lead - a retired London mobster who comes back from his villa in Spain to seek revenge for the murder of his brother at the hands of a gang.

What was your first car?

My first car was a brand new, chrome yellow, three wheel Isetta bubble car - the one with the door at the front and the single wheel at the rear. Top speed was about 60 mph and it had no reverse gear - when you wanted to parallel park, you got out and pushed it into the space.

How many times did it take to pass your test?

It took two goes to pass my driving test, but only one for the motorcycle exam. I was self taught with the car side of things - for some arcane reason the Isetta was classed as a motorcycle, so I could drive it around London on my motorbike licence. Being self-taught probably explains why it took me two attempts to pass the car test.

The Northern Echo:

Who would be your fantasy passenger and where would you go?

My fantasy passenger would be my small dog Maggie because I prefer not to talk when I'm driving. Maggie and I would potter in companionable silence along the beautiful Pacific Coast Highway in California - it winds spectacularly beside the ocean between San Simeon and Carmel and you have to be careful not to drive over the cliff.

What is your dream car?

My dream car is a Lotus Super 7 because I had one once and I loved it dearly. It cost £400, had a Cosworth engine and Weber carburetors and from nought to 60mph was as fast as anything on the road at that time. Girls loved riding in it but it did give them a headache after a while - the exhaust pipe exited the chassis a little too near the passenger seat and after a while the fumes and the noise would get too much for them. The cars are called Caterhams now, so I guess my dream car is a Caterham - the top of the line model, of course.

The Northern Echo:

How would you describe your driving style?

My driving style is now cautious. Well, it was always fairly cautious, except when I had the Lotus Super 7.

Tell me an anecdote from your driving past?

I was at RADA, learning how to act and in class one day I happened to mention my holiday plan to drive all the way to Scotland and back in my tiny Isetta bubble car to visit a relative. My friend Gemma Jones asked if she and her boyfriend could come too? I said, 'You do realise it's an Isetta?' Gemma said she did but that it might be fun. I reminded her that with three of us somehow crammed onto the bench seat there would be room - as far as luggage was concerned - only for a toothbrush and a clean pair of knickers. Gemma insisted that it would still be fun. So we went to Scotland and back, the three of us, squashed together inside a small yellow metal ball on three diminutive wheels. Top speed was reduced to 40mph. We even slept in the thing one night. Gemma was right - it was fun.

What are you listening to?

I am one of those rare and rather irritating people who don't much care for music. I only listen to talk radio. Here in California that means Howard Stern who makes me laugh.

What do you drive now?

I now drive a Ford Escape Hybrid. We used to have a vast SUV called a Suburban, which got the same petrol mileage as an aircraft carrier with a leak - so we got rid of that and bought a hybrid instead. I like the Ford a lot. It's comfortable and fairly economical - what more could I want at my advanced age?

However... in my garage I also have my secret toy, which is a six cylinder, 1520 cc, Honda Valkyrie motorcycle, which I love more than any - and all - of the cars I've ever owned. And here's my confession: I don't really care for cars all that much - not if I can get on a bike instead. I know very little about cars - but I used to know everything there is to know about motorcycles. At one time in my youth I could even tell you the make of the bike simply from the sound coming out of its exhaust pipes. The Valkyrie is the last of a long line of motor cycles I've owned - Royal Enfield, Bianchi, Triumph, BMW, Yamaha, Moto Guzzi are just a few - and the Valkyrie is easily the best of them.