The Speedshop

Following custom bike builder Titch Cormack and his team as they take on a range of mechanical challenges to convert broken and battered vehicles into beautiful, bespoke machines – ready for an epic test drive.

The series opener sees Titch and the team design a sidecar for Titch’s friend and former colleague Toby (see pic below and our main picture) who was shot while on ops in Afghanistan in 2009 and was paralysed from the neck down. He relies on a ventilator but dreams of getting back on a motorbike. “We kept hearing that it couldn’t be done,” says Titch, “so to get there eventually was absolutely amazing. One of my favourite moments in the series was taking Toby out in the sidecar and seeing the look on his face. He could feel the wind in his hair and it’s given him back some kind of freedom.” We also see Titch challenge Billy and John to see who can make the best electric bike powered by an electric drill, then it’s a high-stakes race to see which performs best.

The team travel to Morocco to help with a 1,100km desert expedition for 20 injured and sick veterans. The charity is close to Billy’s heart as it helped him after he too was left with life-changing injuries while on duty. The trio prepare vehicles for the veterans to ride across the desert. “At one point we had two guys in a vehicle with three working limbs between them and they managed to drive one of the buggies together. It was great to see what they could achieve,” says Titch. In addition, Titch restores an old micro-sized sailboat which he must sail around Brownsea Island. “That was an arduous journey,” says Titch. “I’d go so far as to say tortuous.”

Titch, John and Billy help upgrade the oldest serving Land Rover Defender in Exmoor’s mountain rescue fleet. But with a tight deadline to get the vehicle back in service the trio must work around the clock. “The Land Rover was a little bit long in the tooth, it was quite dated and inside the wiring was an absolute birds’ nest,” says Titch. “It was terrible so actually turning it from a rickety old Land Rover into quite a capable vehicle was great. Because it now performs better it gives the rescue service the ability to get out there quicker with the chance to save lives.”

As a tribute to his late grandad, Titch builds a vintage custom motorbike, which he then rides over the same D-Day beach where his grandfather landed during WWII. “That was something I’d always wanted to do,” says Titch. “It was a learning curve for me. It was humbling, poignant and immense.” Back at home, the team also help restore an AC Cobra for its owner who has been ill with cancer.

Titch ticks off a bucket-list item when he takes part in the Weston Beach motorcycle race, on a bike the same age as him. The four-mile sand course contains obstacles the size of houses. As a surprise last-minute entry Billy signs up too, despite only having one fully-functioning arm. “I really enjoyed that one because Billy had no intention of racing Weston beach race and had already said ‘there’s no way I could do that’. Actually secretly, he enjoyed it,” says Titch. “By the end of it he was made up that he finished. It was great.”

The team head off to Iceland where they take on a 700km off-road motorbike ride across snow and ice. “Iceland was a challenge,” admits Titch. “It was such hard work. We underestimated what it would entail and it became really difficult. I pushed the bike as far as it could go really. There were some hairy moments. I had a couple of little crashes. And Bill went through the ice, which led to what I would describe as the incident pit where one person was trying to rescue someone, then they got stuck and we ended up rescuing the rescue vehicle. But even so, it was a really good experience. Although it was nice to thaw out at the end.”