Yellow car owners hold rally in support of pensioner whose 'ugly car' was targeted by vandals for ruining view in Cotswolds village

A convoy of 100 cars has driven through Bibury, in the Cotswolds, in an act of solidarity towards Vauxhall Corsa owner Peter Maddox, 84.

In January it was written off by a vandal who scratched "MOVE" on the bonnet.

Mr Maddox parks his banana-coloured Vauxhall Corsa outside his Cotswolds cottage in 14th-century Arlington Row, which is owned by the National Trust.

The houses are the oldest inhabited properties in the UK and appear on the inside cover of millions of passports.

But a row erupted in 2015 when visitors complained that Mr Maddox's "ugly" car was wrecking the classic English scene in Bibury, Gloucestershire, and "photobombing" tourists' images.

On Saturday yellow cars drover through the area as a "celebration of anything yellow".

Organiser Matty Bee, from Coventry, said: "The response has been amazing and overwhelming; people from all over the country and all over the world have applied to join the group.

"We've had everything here from a three-wheeler and a Mini to a Lamborghini super car...I've never seen so many yellow coloured cars in one place."

Retired dentist Mr Maddox had insisted he had nowhere else to park his car and continued leaving his car on the road, until it was targeted.

A vandal scratched the word "MOVE" onto the bonnet, scratched every other panel and smashed the driver's side window and rear windscreen.

Mechanics told his it will cost £6,000 to repair with a full respray, making the car a probable write-off.

But he has said if that was the case he would buy a replacement - in a lime-green colour.

Mr Maddox moved to Bibury after his wife died 15 years ago and bought his car three years ago.

In 2015, he attracted attention when photographers took to Twitter to complain about the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty being ruined by the "ugly, yellow car".

Police have valued the damage at £6,000 and believe the crime happened between 4pm on Sunday 22 and 7.40am on Monday 23 January.

Sgt Garrett Gloyne said: "We have conducted house-to-house inquiries. We are aware that presence of the vehicle was the bone of contention to some people.

"Nevertheless, the damage caused to vehicle is beyond the pale and we would appeal for anyone who knows anything to contact us."