What was your first car?

It was a little Ford fiesta, a silver one that my granddad had lovingly looked after. He loved his cars and never drove anything other than a Ford. I had it first, it was passed down to my sister, then my best friend Kay got a year or two out of it - reliable little thing that! I think it had moss growing in it by the time it went to the scrap heap mind.

How many times did it take to pass your test?

It was second time lucky. I had an A-level exam that afternoon and passed my test in the morning, but there was a seriously bad night’s sleep with nerves the evening before. My mum has the patience of a saint so she used to take me out. We lived in the Teesside countryside so that helped. I had a great instructor who also needed plenty of patience. I nearly hit a dog on my first test. On the way out of the test centre, I slammed the brakes on and the examiner was like ‘ok so we don’t need to take you through the emergency braking section then, tick that off the list’. I also mounted the kerb, it was a disaster.

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

One of my girlfriends or my sister definitely. I love a girly road trip. I don’t see my friend Kay Murray enough as she lives in Miami. She is presenter for beIN Sport so I’d head to the States, steal her from her boyfriend and head to the west coast. It’d be a carefree girly trip, Thelma and Louise, style reminiscing about the past and planning the future just as we did all those years ago cruising round Middlesbrough in our cars.

What is your dream car?

I’d love an old Mercedes Pagoda the 230SL in a cream or light silver. I lust after classic cars more than modern ones. Or from the same period a mid-60s Ford Mustang, cherry red with cream interior.

The Northern Echo:

I really want to do a drive up the west coast of the States soon and that would be the car of choice for that. Aston Martin would be the brand of choice for something more modern I guess.

How would you describe your driving style?

Fast, I have a few too many points on my licence than I would like and I’m not proud of that fact. I’d consider myself a very good driver and I actually really enjoy driving. I’m up and down the motorway most weeks in Manchester or Teesside. It’s a good time to gather thoughts, have no distractions etc. And - on my Bluetooth of course - I call friends and have lengthy chats on my long journeys so they are my company if I don’t have the radio blaring. I’m very considerate too. I’m a very laid back person so always let people out and wait for people to park and all that. My pet hate is when people don’t say thankyou, even just to the lift of a finger off the wheel in acknowledgement is nice.

Tell me one driving anecdote from your past?

When I first passed my test, I had my dad’s Middlesbrough FC company car - a giant Rover that I drove just a couple of times with mum or dad accompanying. On my first journey out on my own, I reversed out of the drive with mum and dad watching as I went crashing into a giant tree at the front of the house. There are still the markings on that tree where a circle was sliced out of the bark from the exhaust. I never got back into the Rover.

What are you listening to?

If I go to a radio station I’ve got XFM on or 6Music, but depending on the time of day my music choice changes. I sometimes listen to a bit of classical when driving through the countryside or if I need to chill out on a long journey, but I’m more of a rock or indie rock listener. Beastie Boys, Nirvana, Cypress Hill - I’m listening to a lot of at the moment. I think that’s got more to do with where I am in life as opposed to my driving.

What do you drive now?

The Northern Echo:

For years I drove a Mini. I had a bright red Mini many years ago, I got the white stripes put down the front which I absolutely loved. It was just a Mini One but it was so reliable. I think I did about 40,000 miles in less than three years in it.

I drive a black Mercedes SLK250 now. It’s only a two-seater, but there’s only ever really me in it. It’s still a sturdy car and I feel safe in it, it’s a good size to drive around in, I love the shape of the front. It’s a diesel so does well on the miles for all my driving and it’s a really comfortable car, provided you’re not 6ft 4ins or over. In London we get lucky with the weather so I can have the top down fairly often. It’s the car of choice with us girls at Sky at the moment, me Rachel Wyse and Olivia Wayne all have the same car but different spec or colour.