Bentley S3 Continental

Chichester, England, United Kingdom

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S3 Continental Flying Spur Sports Saloon
Coachwork by H J Mulliner Blue Lena

Formerly the property of Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones

Recalling the Bentley in his recently published autobiography, 'Life', Keith said: 'This was 'Blue Lena', as it was christened, my dark blue Bentley, my S3 Continental Flying Spur an automobile of some rarity, one of a limited edition of eighty-seven. It was named in honour of Lena Horne I sent her a picture of it. Having this car was already heading for trouble, breaking the rules of the establishment, driving a car I was definitely not born into 'Blue Lena' had carried us on many an acid-fuelled journey. Modification included a secret compartment in the frame for the concealing of illegal substances. It had a huge bonnet, and to turn it you really had to swing it about. 'Blue Lena' required some art and knowledge of its contours in tight situation it was six inches wider at the back than the front. You got to know your car, no doubt about that. Three tons of machinery. A car that was made to be driven fast at night.'

The move to Morocco followed the infamous police 'drugs bust' of Keith's home 'Redlands' in Wilmington, Surrey where the Stones and their guests, including Mick Jagger's then girlfriend, Marianne Faithful, were staying. No arrests were made at the time but Richards, Jagger and their art-dealer friend Robert Fraser were subsequently charged with drugs offences. To avoid the attentions of a rapacious British media, which had been fed information about the arrests by the police, the band and its entourage moved to Tangier in Morocco to await the trial. Jagger and Faithful flew direct but Keith and Brian Jones decided to travel with 'Blue Lena', which was flown from England to France aboard a British United Air Ferries 'Carvair'. Keith's chauffeur Tom Keylock, who would become the Stones' chief 'fixer', then drove them to Morocco, with Keith sitting up front to change the 45s on the little Philips record player. Brian Jones and his then girlfriend, actress Anita Pallenberg, sat in the back with Deborah Dixon, a Texan friend they had collected in Paris.

Jones was taken ill with pneumonia during the trip and was transferred to Toulouse hospital, remaining there while the others continued the journey into Spain. Leaving a nightclub in Barcelona one night, they found themselves in a near-riot situation, with people throwing things at the Bentley. Luckily the police intervened to rescue them. Having spent a night in police custody, and after the Bentley's windscreen had been repaired, they continued the journey but without Deborah, who had had enough excitement and wanted to return to Paris. It was there, in the back of 'Blue Lena', that romance blossomed between Keith and Anita. The couple would go on to have three children and remain together until 1980.

From Morocco, Keith and Anita moved to Rome, Italy where Anita was to star alongside Jane Fonda in the motion picture 'Barbarella', directed by Fonda's husband Roger Vadim. They lived in the Villa Medici, a magnificent Renaissance palace with formal gardens, and were driven around Rome and its environs by Tom Keylock at the wheel of 'Blue Lena'. One of Keith's after-market modifications was a pair of loudspeakers behind the front grille, which Anita used to terrorise local motorists by putting on a policewoman's voice, reading their number plates aloud and issuing bogus instructions.

During the course of Keith Richards' ownership, 'Blue Lena' was involved in several accidents. In 1976, returning from a concert at Knebworth in Hertfordshire where the where the 'Stones had topped the bill alongside Led Zeppelin, Keith fell asleep at the wheel and the Bentley ended up hitting a tree. The were seven occupants, included Keith's son Marlon, but the Continental's inherent strength ensured that nobody was seriously hurt. The most serious accident happened later in 1976, on 19th May. Driving home on the M1 motorway from a concert at Welford Road Stadium in Leicester, Keith left the road and 'Blue Lena' ended up in a field, having ploughed through a hedge and a fence. When the police arrived they discovered illegal substances in Keith's possession and he was arrested.

In 1978 Keith parted with 'Blue Lena'