Eric ‘Slowhand’ Clapton Fined In Public For Driving Very Quickly In His Porsche

He may be called Ol’ Slowhand by his fans.

But Eric Clapton likes speed.

The 71-year-old guitarist, below, was stopped by police for speeding in his Porsche yesterday and was taken to task by a traffic officer before he was eventually given a ticket, the Daily Mail reported.

Clapton was heading south out of London on the A3, likely to Hurtwood Edge, his 1910 Italian villa-style country pile in Ewhurst, Surrey.

The guitarist, worth £160 million, was forced to pull over at a Little Chef service station.

Unluckily, the roadside cafe was being used as a film location for After Louise, a comedy starring Greg Wise and Cradle To Grave actress Alice Sykes.

One onlooker told the Mail: “We were watching Greg Wise film a scene and then suddenly Eric Clapton arrived at the petrol station.

“It was very funny because we all thought he was there to be part of the film, but then a police car pulled up. Eric had to sit in the front seat with the policeman. He was in there for ages and was clearly getting a good telling off – either that or the copper was asking him about his favourite tracks.

“By the end Eric was apologising profusely. I’ve no idea how fast he had been going, but maybe he was pleased to just be getting a speeding ticket and not something more serious.”

Clapton, above in his prime, has had almost as many speeding convictions as hit records.

In 1988, he lost his licence for six weeks, and his lawyer claimed he was “hurrying to a charity cricket match”.

He was subsequently banned for six months in 2000 and was suspended from driving in France in 2004 for driving at 134mph.

When he was pulled over for speeding on the A3 in 2004, a police officer asked him: “What do you do for a living to have such a nice car?”

Clapton replied: “I’m in the music business,” and the officer replied: “You must be doing OK then.”

Pictures Getty Images