Reasons to be cheerful

This was no politically correct electric wannabe, of course. Its 600bhp, 553lb/ft engine is the most compact V12 in production, a nightmare to work on but, if you’re paying £153,400 for a set of 20” wheels, you don’t worry about that. Although the entire production range is soon to move over to biofuels, it still scores an almost respectable 17mpg on the combined fuel cycle. At a steady 70mph at 2,000rpm the trip computer read between 17.6mpg and 18.5. There’s talk of a forthcoming diesel, unprecedented for the company and possibly off-putting to some traditional customers, but not many and not seriously. If you can win Le Mans with diesels and still keep them quiet, you can make a GT or a new big saloon that goes like a — well, like a Le Mans car fitted out as your best drawing room.

I’m talking about Bentley, of course — the new GTC Speed convertible, the fastest ragtop in the world. No one else makes cars like this and it’s better looking than its coupé sibling. Brazilian designer Raul Pires’s cleverness with horizontal lines and the discreet spoiler on the trailing edge gives it what the coupé lacks, a truly desirable posterior. And, recession notwithstanding, the orders are coming in for when Crewe resumes full production. Come on, the bluebells are out and most things may never happen, as another poet, Larkin, observed. Cheer yourself up.