John Richard Keith "Fuzz" Townshend (born 31 July 1964) is a British drummer, TV presenter of National Geographic Channel's Car SOS (also shown on Channel 4/More4), motoring journalist for Classic Car Weekly, former technical editor of Practical Classics, and mechanic. He is also honorary president of the Triumph Sports Six Club. He also had a solo music career from 1996 to 2002. The early years Townshend's Afro hair was unique in his junior school and so, at seven years of age, his school chums renamed him Fuzz. His mother won a Vauxhall Chevette in a national newspaper competition when he was ten; having never learned to drive, she instead opted to take the prize in cash and spent it buying her son a drum kit. After taking lessons from local jazz musician Al Reed, Townshend's stage debut was made in March 1977, aged just 12. By the end of the 1970s, Townshend had graduated to playing in clubs with college bands. Townshend started an apprenticeship with the local bus company, the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive, working on buses at the PTE's Dudley garage. During his time at Dudley, he recorded his first two John Peel Sessions for BBC Radio 1 and released his first single which made its way into the NME indie charts. Music Townshend joined former Beat singer Ranking Roger and his band General Public, which later toured the US under the guise of 'Ranking Roger'. Local indie band Pop Will Eat Itself noticed him drumming with local acts and asked him to join. Townshend spent the next four and a half years drumming for the band, during which time they had successes in both the UK single and album charts and toured North America with Nine Inch Nails. Townshend started playing drums for the dance music outfit, Bentley Rhythm Ace. His first solo release, "Hello Darlin", was released in 1996, and he eventually signed to Echo Records, in July 1997. The record charted at number 51 in the UK. However, he was now able to make his first solo album, Far In, which was eventually released in the UK in 1999 and the US in 2001, the latter being on Stinky Records headed by chief MTV/VH1 lawyer Sabrina Silverberg. His second, self-titled album followed in 2002. Townshend became a part-time college lecturer in 2004, lecturing in music practice and music technology and during this time, his