Life On Cars writer picks up award

THE writer behind Life On Cars has won a prestigious award at a glittering ceremony in London.

David Simister (pictured, centre) was presented with a ‘One to Watch’ award at this year’s Bauer Media Awards, held last Friday (June 27) at The O2.

David, who was praised for his achievements as news editor at Classic Car Weekly, said: "I'm over the moon to have won such a prestigious award a little over a year after I started at Classic Car Weekly.

"Even though I write more about Austins and Astons than Ormskirk and Aughton, I'm delighted to carry on The Champion spirit of finding great stories through hard work and good journalism."

The award was in recognition for a series of exclusive motoring scoops for Classic Car Weekly and sister website Classic Cars For Sale, including breaking the news that the world’s first Triumph Spitfire was up for sale and that the world’s largest collection of cars from the James Bond films was being sold for £20m.

John Westlake, acting editor of Classic Car Weekly, said: "David richly deserved this prestigious award. His tea-making is woeful, but he's a very promising journalist."

Earlier this year, Life On Cars picked up a prize at the inaugural UK Blog Awards, and when working at The Champion newspaper in 2011 David won the O2 North West Scoop of The Year award.

Read more of David’s news stories every Wednesday in Classic Car Weekly

Life begins at Classic Car Weekly

JUST a quick note to say how much I've enjoyed my first day as a full time motoring journalist.

It's not every day you start as a writer for Classic Car Weekly, which is based down in Peterborough and published by Bauer Media, but that's exactly how the dream of getting up, driving gorgeous old cars and then getting paid to write about them, started this morning.

I've already been entrusted with a series of motoring-related missions, including some stories which should, fingers crossed, be in next Wednesday's edition. All this on a day when I've managed to get totally lost in the office's endless corridors and have only just discovered where the canteen is!

Ever since I learned to string "Range Rover" into a sentence I've been pretty much obsessed with cars, especially older ones which make grunty noises when you put your foot down. For the past three years, my friends at The Champion have allowed me to indulge my automotive passions on the flimsiest of journalistic excuses - and don't worry, the weekly column WILL continue - but now I'm a fully grown boy and I get to do what I love doing most of all for a living.

To say I'm looking forward to giving these automotive adventures my all's a bit of an understatement.

Tomorrow's assignment: drive an E-Type. No, really. One of my first assignments for Classic Car Weekly is to let you know what it's like to get behind the wheel of a car I've been itching to drive since I was ten years old.

I'll keep you posted...

Have you got a story for Classic Car Weekly you'd like to share with David? Get in touch with him by sending an email to david.simister@classiccarweekly.co.uk or give him a call on 01733 468847.

You wouldn't steal a car...

A RATHER familiar looking article on an Indonesian website I clocked the other day reminded me of that advert you get on almost every DVD about why it's wrong to make pirate movies.

You can imagine I was just a tiny bit annoyed when I came across a motoring website yesterday, The Fast Cars, which featured an article about the author's reflections on their 1990, Mariner Blue Mazda MX-5. A lot like my very own, 1990, Mariner Blue Mazda MX-5.

Among the other articles featured on The Fast Cars was a piece on how the new Volkswagen e-up! has an amusing name which sounds a lot like a Northern English greeting - amazing really, given the site's based in the Far East and I doubt the author has heard of Lancashire, let alone visited it. Yet what really irked me was when I saw an in-depth article on Henry Segrave and his connections to Southport, plus the same images I'd tracked down for a feature in GR8Life magazine.

Yup, you've guessed it; weeks of research and effort for a lengthy motoring feature is being used, without my permission, on an Indonesian-run motoring website.

Anyone who blogs will be familiar with this practice - it's called 'content scraping' - which involves owners of unscrupulous websites taking your hard work, without asking you, and reposting it on their own sites. In my case, articles which have been written for Life On Cars have been taken and tweaked without my say-so, the pictures, even the ones where I've negotiated their use, copied and pasted, and the hyperlinks removed for ones which suit their own use. To add insult to injury the token link to Life On Cars credits this website as "a strange picture source". Charming!

I have written to the owner of The Fast Cars pointing out the obvious - that using content and pictures taken from other peoples' websites without their permission is theft, that I'd like the offending articles taken down with immediate effect, and that I'd consider legal action if they don't. While it's flattering that they'd want to use content from my blog and highly amusing that they make such a hash out of rewording it, it is still a breach of copyright that does down the hard work of motoring journalists across the UK.

Sorry this entry hasn't been terribly motoring-releated, but I'd love to know if you see any Life On Cars articles - indeed, articles written by any pukka UK motoring publication - which is being used this way!

Life On Cars gets a new logo

THE Mini is out and the open-top sports car is in.

Eagle-eyed readers might have spotted a few changes on Life On Cars this week; that's because, for the first time in more than three years, the logos for both the online blog and the column printed in The Champion newspaper have been changed. Where for the past three years the car pictured in the logo has always been my old Mini, now it's a Morgan Threewheeler, and what you see above is what will accompany the Champ column from next Wednesday onwards.

It's been a good week for The Champion, which last night was named as the North West's best free newspaper at the prestigious O2 Media Awards. Given that Life On Cars is a small part of that - and one which I know has got quite a following locally - I'd like to thank all the motoring enthusiasts who regularly turn to our titles for supporting us!

Finally, a quick reminder that a motoring event not to be missed - the Life On Cars Petrolhead Pub Quiz - is taking place in Southport next Sunday night (November 18). Whether you're winding down after next weekend's National Classic Car Show at the NEC, keen to show off your motoring knowledge or just happy to help raise some funds for the National Autistic Society, it should be a fun night and well worth the £2 it costs to take part.

See you there...

Video: Confessions of a motoring journalist

AS mentioned earlier in the week, I made a video to show the nice people at the Institute of Advanced Motorists but things didn't exactly go to plan.

This, had the computer not said no, is what they would've seen - a sort of narrated slideshow, giving a glimpse into the world of roadtesting cars and the motors I both hate and rate. Instead, I thought I'd share it with the wider world, so the finished film doesn't go unseen.

Enjoy...