×

You've read your three free articles!

Register to get two more free articles plus an exclusive subscription discount, or click below to subscribe right away.

Register

Already a subscriber? Login in here.

Features

Back to Library >
ti icon

Features

Postcard from Rome – on a Vespa

3 months ago

Writer:

Andrew English | Journalist

Date:

10 July 2026

‘Live dangerously, take the whole day,’ says snappily dressed journalist Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck) encouraging Princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn), to bunk off her royal duties in William Wyler’s 1953 Oscar-winning charmer, Roman Holiday.

‘Work? Huh! Today’s going to be a holiday,’ he adds.

It’s one of my favourite films and I’ve seen it many times. A love letter to the Eternal City and a tribute to decent behaviour by journalists, it earned Hepburn an Academy Award, which she left in the ladies at the award ceremony…

The hero scooter is a 1951 Vespa 125 Farabasso (low light) which provides genuinely thrilling transport for hack and princess as they ride a choreographed sightseeing route before the runaway scene causes the carabineri in Jeeps to give pursuit to the young couple on the Aston Martin Racing Green scooter.

You've read your free articles!

How about signing up for a 30-day free trial, from which you can cancel any time? You’ll get full access to our new daily articles, written by the world’s best motoring journalists, plus our archive of almost 2000 articles, and exclusive daily and weekly podcasts – all ad-free. Click the link below to check out our monthly and annual subscriptions, and begin your free trial.

Subscribe

Already subscribed? Click here to log in.