After more than a million miles on the road, Brightlingsea taxi driver Neil Carlyle – known locally as the ‘singing cabby’ – has turned off the meter and retired.

After 17 years in the army as a musician, Neil first took to the road professionally as a bus and then coach driver, taking passengers all over Europe. He started his NWC Taxis business 20 years ago, clocking up to 50,000 miles a year driving all over the country.

Memorable clients included royal portrait painter Richard Stone, who Neil delivered to sittings at Buckingham Palace. He also helped the painter carry a portait of Margaret Thatcher into Downing Street – watched by then prime minister Gordon Brown. One of his longest trips was to the Lake District – during which he was bitten by the customer’s dog.

While he’s retiring from the road, he won’t be giving up his music. He’s the Sgt Major in the Essex Yeomanry Band and plays trombone in the Essex Concert Band, which recently performed in St James’ Church. He also runs open mic events in Ye Olde Swan and gained fame for his online performances during lockdown.

Neil said that he never minded the early morning airport runs and enjoyed driving on a deserted M25. But the taxi business has changed over the years. Post-covid, he’s noticed that fewer people are going out on Friday and Saturday nights, while the expansion of Uber into Colchester “has made a big difference”.

“It’s been nice being my own boss,” he said. “There’s been a lot more positives than negatives.”