In a series of reviews of protection driver courses on offer to the UK’s chauffeur industry, Andy Dubberley spends eight days with Mark Kendrick from Bespoke Driver Training. He writes…

“I had a good feeling about Bespoke Driver Training’s course from the start because even the joining instructions tell you to ‘bring your driving licence and a sense of humour’, a line which immediately made signing-up for Mark Kendrick’s highly regarded training considerably less daunting for an old sweat like me.

Although I’ve done various bits and pieces of advanced driver training over the years, this was by far the most intensive chauffeur course I’d ever been on, but I wanted to experience just how beneficial such training could be to both to someone looking to enter the industry and the likes of yours truly who’s been round the block more than a few times.

You don’t have to spend too long in Mark’s company to become fully embroiled in this man’s passion for the art of professional driving, it’s nothing short of addictive. I’m convinced whilst the other kids busied themselves playing kiss chase at primary school, master Kendrick was setting out lines of cones in the playground and practising lane changes in a pedal car. He eats, sleeps and breathes advanced driving, and I mean advanced!

Here’s someone who’s made a career out of pushing the boundaries of both security chauffeuring and performance driving, as well as being daring enough to question some of the long held protocols contained in the police’s own beloved road craft manual. Whilst Mark’s rather maverick approach to advanced driver instruction has no doubt put a few senior police officers’ noses out of joint over the years, it’s also led him to be asked to train everyone from UK special forces to chauffeurs employed by some of London’s most exclusive hotels.