Diana Dors' Maserati is set to fetch more than £500,000 at auction

Diana Dors’ Maserati that big-spending star bought on a whim at motor show despite being in massive debt is set to fetch more than £500,000 at auction

  • Diana Dors’ Mistral Spyder is up for auction for around £550,000 this month
  • She bought the brand new Maserati in 1964 when she saw it at a motorshow
  • The sports car was capable of 0-60mph in 6.2 seconds with a 160mph top speed
  • Dors sold the Italian car to an Australian businessman and went bankrupt in 1968

A rare Maserati sports car bought on a whim by flamboyant blonde bombshell movie actress Diana Dors is to go under the hammer for more than £500,000.

The late big-spending star — known as the ‘English Marilyn Monroe’ — was pictured splashing out on the brand new Mistral Spyder in 1964 when she saw it at Earls Court Motorshow while in the throes of bankruptcy.

Now the vehicle is to be auctioned off at Silverstone Auction house on May 28 at Sywell Aerodrome in Northamptonshire with a guide price of between £475,000 and £550,000.

Diana Dors bought the brand new Mistral Spyder in 1964 when she saw it at Earls Court Motorshow while in the throes of bankruptcy

With a 3.7-litre engine developing 255bhp, the Italian sports car was capable of 0-60mph in just 6.2 seconds with a top speed of 160mph.

One-time Hollywood favourite Dors had previously worked with Bob Hope and Danny Kaye and signed with RKO pictures — but in 1958 discovered she was in serious debt following her separation from first husband, film promoter Dennis Hamilton.

After returning to the UK after a stint doing cabaret she bought the Maserati when she was 33 while promoting comedy flop the Counterfeit Constable in which she starred with Arthur Mullard.

It is thought the two-seater Mistral convertible — one of only 14 built-in right-hand drive — later took pride of place next to her Rolls Royce which she bought aged 20, despite the fact that she was not old enough to drive at the time.

The actress owned the Mistral for an undisclosed period of time before selling it to an Australian businessman. 

She went bankrupt in 1968 owing £53,000, of which £48,000 was to the Inland Revenue. She had assets of a little over £200.

She bought the Maserati when she was 33 while promoting comedy flop the Counterfeit Constable in which she starred with Arthur Mullard

With a 3.7-litre engine developing 255bhp, the Italian sports car was capable of 0-60mph in just 6.2 seconds with a top speed of 160mph

The three-times married actress died in 1984 aged 52.

The Maseratri Mistral Spyder was first shown in a preview at the Salone Internazionale dell’Automobile di Torino in November 1963 before entering production in 1964.

Dors’ model finished in Argento Auteuil silver paintwork with a leather interior was delivered to London-based Maserati Concessionaires in the late summer of 1964 before it was put on the Maserati Stand at the 1964 Earls Court Motor Show where she fell in love with it while guest starring at the two-week event.

Following Dors’ ownership, the Mistral was acquired by an Australian living in London who would then go on to export the Maserati to Australia in 1976.

In 1983, ownership passed to a Mr Philip Larsson and, subsequently, to the late Clive Smith of Melbourne who was well-known for his taste in Italian cars. 

In 2015, the Mistral returned to the UK where it was fully restored.

The two-seater Mistral convertible is one of only 14 built-in right-hand drive

The car will be up for sale at Silverstone Auction house on May 28 at Sywell Aerodrome in Northamptonshire with a guide price of between £475,000 and £550,000

A spokesman for Silverstone Auctions said: ‘This rare, UK-supplied, Mistral Spyder was purchased from the Maserati stand at the 1964 Earls Court Motor Show by Diana Dors.

‘The plan was that after the show, the Spyder would become Maserati’s London demonstrator, however, Ms Dors fell in love with the Spyder and simply had to have it.

‘Frequently described as the “English Marilyn Monroe”, she was no stranger to publicity and even notoriety featuring in the popular press as the youngest person to own a Rolls-Royce, despite the fact that she was not even old enough to drive at the time.

‘The rare and highly desirable Mistral would undoubtedly fit in with the movie star’s high-profile lifestyle.

‘We are very proud to offer this special example to the market with everything in its favour — one of very few, the Motor Show Car, celebrity provenance, matching numbers, Maserati Classiche Certification and a Concours-standard presentation that is simply breathtaking.’   

The British Marilyn Monroe: How Diana Fluck became blonde bombshell Diana Dors but never conquered Hollywood 

Diana Dors was dubbed the UK’s Marilyn Monroe

Born Diana Fluck in 1931, Dors grew up in Wiltshire and loved cinema from an early age, idolising Lana Turner and Veronica Lake.

She was offered a place at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art aged 14 and became its youngest ever student after lying about her age.

After a string of modelling gigs and bit-part film roles, she began netting leading roles in 1949 and by 1951 had been established as a ‘sex symbol’ of the British industry.

She appeared primarily in British comedies until 1956 when she signed a three-film deal with RKO Pictures in Hollywood.

But after her then-husband Dennis Hamilton punched a photographer when the couple were pushed into a swimming pool at a Los Angeles party the press turned on her, and a subsequent divorce from Hamilton saw her contract terminated on a ‘morals clause’.

She returned to Britain and continued her career while enjoying high-profile relationships with stuntman Tommy Yeardye and comedian Richard Dawson.

After another attempt at breaking the US failed, she left Dawson and their sons Mark and Gary and returned to the UK, but her career became restricted to supporting roles, with most coming in the sex comedy boom of the 1970s.

Meanwhile she stayed in the headlines after hosting adult parties.

She married actor Alan Lake in 1968 and they remained together until her death from ovarian cancer in 1984 aged 52, having son Jason in 1969.

The Maserati is thought to have taken pride of place next to Diana Dors’ Rolls Royce which she bought aged 20, despite the fact that she was not old enough to drive at the time 

The actress sold the Mistral to an Australian businessman. She went bankrupt in 1968 and had assets of a little over £200

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