He doesn't look it, but Autoglym chief executive Michael Williams is 65 - and has just retired after more than 30 years with the premium car care products company.

Williams, who joined Autoglym in the 1960s and had been at its helm since 1974, was given a This Is Your Life style send-off by colleagues, motor industry representatives, friends and distributors from countries as far afield as the USA, Canada, India, Japan, South Africa and Taiwan.

“He was clearly taken aback by the whole thing, including the number of people there and the considerable distance many had travelled,” says Paul Caller, who has succeeded Williams as chief executive at the Letchworth-based firm.

“It was a fighting send-off for someone who has been at the heart of Autoglym's success from the very beginning.”