Andy Priaulx was insistent that his island home feature strongly in Hello! magazine. This shot by Tim Feak was taken at Vazon. (0658526)
GUERNSEY’S ‘Posh and Becks’ have made the pages of Hello! The celebrity magazine, which hits the shelves today, features a six-page spread covering three times World Touring Cars champion Andy Priaulx, wife Jo, son Seb and daughter Danniella.
A UK journalist spent the day in the summer with the family and local photographer Tim Feak took the pictures at the family’s St Peter’s home as well as on location around Guernsey and Herm.
‘It was like being in Barbados the day she came over, it couldn’t have been better,’ said Mr Priaulx. The article came about through friends Sian Lloyd, best known as an ITV weather girl, and husband Jonathan Ashman, a motor racing entrepreneur.
‘She comes to a lot of the races and was really pushing for us to do something with them. Then when I got the MBE that was enough for them to go for it,’ said Mr Priaulx.
He was very keen for his island home to be used to its full potential as the backdrop for the shoot.
‘Guernsey is a very big part of what I do. It motivates me, helps me to relax and keeps me grounded and I wanted all of that to come across in the Hello! feature,’ said Mr Priaulx.
Mrs Priaulx had some superstitious reasons for having been initially reluctant.
‘I read that if you get into Hello! magazine, your marriage splits up,’ she said.
The magazine offered to send over a team of stylists, but she chose her own clothes and used a local make-up artist and hairdresser for the photographs.
‘What you see is what you get with me,’ she said. ‘It was very exciting. I don’t think anyone from Guernsey has been in it before like this. It’s something everyone knows and talks about.’
The journalist was most interested in how Andy had gained success in the sport, the difficulties he faced reaching the top and, more recently, details of receiving his MBE.
‘Unfortunately it doesn’t just tell of success, I don’t have the Lewis Hamilton factor. You really have to be a marketing phenomenon, but I decided early on I wasn’t going to sell my soul to the media,’ said Mr Priaulx.
A number of Guernsey businesses were involved in the shoot, from hairdressers to flower arrangers.
‘The result will be seen by over two million people and it’s nice to think that this really was an all-Guernsey effort,’ said Mrs Priaulx.
Commerce and Employment’s director of marketing and tourism Chris Elliott said: ‘Exposure of Guernsey in high readership magazines like this has got to be a good thing for the island’s profile.’
Article posted on 21st October, 2008 - 2.29pm
15 Article Comments
Come off it Miss Ash. Guernsey, Andy Priaux and his raison d’etre are quite a cut above Posh and Becks. You may well idolise P & B as your standard but they are not everyone’s cup of tea and many with any achievement would feel most slighted.
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Just wondering why is his car STILL on English plates?
I remember seeing him drivin it in the summer, On English Plates.
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Posh and Becks – what an insult!!!
How about letting Andy’s considerable achievements stand on their own rather than lazily comparing them a couple of rich simpletons with no taste and a bad line in childrens names.
Zoe, how about an apology in the Press?
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Posh & Becks??? Really???
Posh = an international multi million pound record selling artist with several world tours under her belt.
Becks = A former England captain, a current England player that has played at the very highest level for many years.
Andy & Jo Priaulx = a couple from Guernsey, he drives a car…
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W.H. Bonney.
Summing up your summing up, He kicks a ball + she’s a WAG who sang = Loadsa vulgar money.
Andy Priaux drives with acute precision at high speed and is 3 x WC for not much recognition but feet on the ground.
No comparison. But cannot think why he agreed to appear in Hello.
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Posh & Becks are great and so are Andy & Jo. Both Becks and Andy are, to my mind, under-rated as we Brits tend to do all too often preferring to take them for granted and cut-down their acheivements.
Becks has nearly equalled Bobby Charltons caps total and is still thristy for more and flying to Italy to stay competitive. He may be a superstar but he’s not lost his dedication.
Andy has not only reached the upper echelons of motor racing but won 4 Championships on the trot from an under-funded racing team against the big guns. Yet he’s still hardly recognised as the uber-talented and gritty athlete he is.
Give Andy his due he’s never lost his Guernsey roots either. He’s an island treasure who deserves our admiration and respect for what he’s achieved.
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gsygal
its probably a lot cheaper for him to keep his english plates on his car rather than having to keep changing plates whenever he goes to england, plus does it really matter?
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Ben: Im pretty sure his car stays over here as i have seen it while he is away competing.
Therefore he is not paying Guernsey road taxes, which considering his love for the Island and his rather large income is rather selfish i Believe.
Also as he lives over here it would be easier having Gsy plates as there is no law in England about how long a car can be there on foreign plates.
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Gsygal says “there is no law in England about how long a car can be there on foreign plates”
If you are resident in the UK you have to have UK plates and quickly.
Similarly, if you are resident I Guernsey you must have Guernsey plates.
Seems the answer to this problem depends where Mr Priaux lives.
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Well done Andy and Jo; Andy worked hard and Jo gave him lots of support. I’m not sure if this is common in Guernsey, or just on this site, but there appears to be quite a few envious saddos that just don’t like hard work and success.
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Read the picture caption: “Andy Priaulx was insistent that his island home feature strongly in Hello! magazine”
He probably appeared in Hello because there was an opportunity to promote his beloved isle and what girl wouldn’t fancy her face in a magazine
What’s the problem?
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JohnnyB. Not that great! Only 5 goals for vulgar millions and now they have to rent him out to try to recoup something of what they pay him. Galaxy’s glitter is somewhat dimmed as well as their bank account. When with United and England, Beckhams ’set piece’ play was second to none and if there were penalties and close free kicks he thrived. But surely in the real game, goals from proactive attack, i.e, alla Rooney, are more demanding?
And what does Miss Ash have to say – on reflection?
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Jackie – you are surely not that naive? He probably had a bill to pay and the fee came in handy. He could have been sitting anywhere in the world – I certainly would not have noticed Guernsey as the place the pictures were taken, had he not spelt it out.
Re: number plates I understand you can stay up to one year in the UK before having to exchange plates. It is a hassle though, as no one has ever heard of Guernsey or the Channel Islands and most garages laugh at the fact there is no MOT and the “log” book.
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Tom, the players respect Becks, most pundits like to see him in an England shirt and the crowd roar him on too. He doesn’t beat as many players as I would like to see a winger do nor score as many goals as Ronaldo but his passing and set-peice threat is second to none. Becks is definately up there and ues he’s good looking and glamerous – most footballers are. I’d rather enjoy an Englishman at the top of the world game rather than carp about petty issues.
As for Andy Priaulx I should have mentioned Jo his wife is a truck load of support for Andy. She’s a wonderful wifey and a lovely person to boot.
Andy’s car has English plates because he’s contracted as BMW UK. This issue is again just a bit pathetic. Andy is a Champ and deserves our admiration and affection.
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The reference to the Priaulxs as Guernsey’s ‘Posh and Becks’ is a light-hearted one and is based upon their high media profile.
Andy and Jo treat the comment with the good humour in which it is made.
Thank you for your contributions to this discussion, which is now closed.
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