A RARE luxury car that was the pride and joy of a prominent Bournemouth hotelier is to be restored after being found fit for a scrapyard.

The car belonged to Phyllis Lee-Duncan, who lived at Sandbanks and managed the Royal Bath Hotel.

Her Mercedes W111 SSE convertible, which she bought new in 1963 and owned for 18 years, was stolen and abandoned in recent years before being bought by a pair of collectors.

Father-and-son team Paul and Jensen Cannon, of Ashford in Kent, are to spend six months restoring it to its original condition.

Paul said: “We collect old Mercedes with a deep passion and look for them to restore. This one came up for sale with a bit of a mixed-up story.”

A previous owner bought it from Bournemouth years ago, he said, but it was left in a barn, from which it was stolen. “It was stolen by some cheap thieves and later abandoned on a rooftop car park in Folkestone,” said Paul.

“The rain had been getting to it. Anyone who didn’t know this car would have thought it would go straight to the breakers’ yard.

“The car would have been a big part of this lady’s life and a very glamorous article in its day.

“We’re going to make it totally like new and bring it to its original colour and spec.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do. It’s very rewarding in the end.”

Mrs Lee-Duncan, the widow of a Royal Navy admiral, was the granddaughter of Sir Merton and Annie Russell-Cotes, whose home is now the Russsell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum. She died in 1996, leaving a fortune of nearly £1million to good causes.

The museum put the Daily Echo in touch with her nephew, Peter Stebbings, who remembers the car well.

He said of his aunt: “She loved cars. She had a had a selection over the years of very smart cars.

“I’ve driven the Mercedes on numerous occasions, either with her or without, and found it a lovely car to sit in and drive.”

Although the car is in poor condition, it came with paperwork revealing that Majestic Garage of Hinton Road, Bournemouth, supplied it for a retail price of £4,041 in 1963. Mrs Lee-Duncan traded in a 1958 Mercedes 220 convertible for £1,700.

The paperwork also shows Mrs Lee-Duncan, writing from homes in Sandbanks and Lymington, had some quibbles with the service.

In February 1968, a garage boss signing himself ‘Geoffrey’ and addressing her as Phyllis, wrote: “Nice to hear from you again even if we are in hot water!

“I am not too happy about some of the activities of our accounts department, but I expect it is hardly necessary to tell you of all people just how much bother can be caused by poor staff work.”

Mr Stebbings said: “She was somebody you wouldn’t cross if you had the chance. She ran the hotel with an iron rod, which in those days it really needed. It was a big hotel, with five stars. She had a reputation for being strong and fairly demanding.

“She didn’t change cars that often. She got to love them and felt happy driving them. She bought them because she liked the look of them and stuck to them.”

Ron Hands, who was Royal Bath doorman in later years, said: “She was a frequent visitor to the Royal Bath, normally for either lunch or afternoon tea.

“She was a very pleasant lady.”