An historic car is coming to the rescue of a village church’s £70,000 appeal.

A picture of the famous Chitty 1 racing car, the forerunner of the legendary Chitty Bang Bang, is being raffled at the Mermaid Inn, Bishopsbourne, in aid of the St Mary’s Church appeal fund.

The Zeppelin-engined car was built in 1921 at Higham Park, Bridge, the home of its owner, the legendary Count Louis Zborowski who raced the car to victory in its first outing at Brooklands.

The silver gelatin print taken from the original glass plate negative and worth £200 is being raffled at £1 a ticket (six for £5) with all profits going to the appeal.

It has been donated to the fund by Martin and Lizzie Jordan, whose firm Jarrotts deals in motoring memorabilia.

A watercolour of the Mermaid Inn, painted by Anne Rooke, of Bridge, is also being raffled in aid of the fund. Tickets are also £1.

The church, described as the cradle of Anglicanism by its 15th century Rector Richard Hooker, whose books of Eccliastical Polity provided the foundation of the Anglican Church, needs £70,000 for repair work.

The main task is to replace the broken drainage system around the base of the church walls to help eradicate rising damp which is damaging important mosaics by the pre-Raphaelite designer William Morris.