Famous faces join the London to Brighton Veteran Car run

Geri and her husband, Red Bull Racing Formula 1 team boss Christian Horner, will rip up the symbolic Red Flag to start the race at Constitution Hall in London just before 7am.

The pair will then board a 1904 Panhard-Levassor, owned by Lord Irvine Laidlaw, a former member of the House of Lords.

The oldest motoring event in the world will bring huge crowds to Sussex and thousands more will be lining the route from the capital on Sunday.

About 400 veteran cars are expected to be chugging down to the coast – including more than 114 international entries.

Motoring enthusiasts will be cheering on the drivers as the cars stream down the A23 before finishing on Madeira Drive. The first vehicles are expected to arrive on the seafront

from 10am, with the last likely to roll in by 4.30pm.

The yearly spectacle dates back to 1927 and is acknowledged as the longest running motoring event in the world.

Other well-known names planning to take part this year include television presenter Kevin McCloud from Grand Designs.

Ben Cussons, chairman of the Royal Automobile Club, said: “The unique Veteran Car Run is without doubt one of the highlights on the international motoring calendar.

“Even more than that, it’s a wonderful piece of living history and an annual reminder of the fearless motoring pioneers who, literally, paved the way for all of us.”

For the third year in a row the run will stop in Crawley high street.

Gatwick Airport, which has a long-established partnership with the car run, will be providing spectators in the high street with a rare opportunity to have their photograph taken behind the wheel of a static veteran car.

The first cars are expected at the Crawley stop from 8.15am.

Gatwick Airport’s community engagement manager Melanie Wrightson said: “We are proud to once again be partnering with the Bonhams Veteran Car Run, supported by Hiscox, in what is sure to be another exciting event for everyone who is participating and spectating.”