Ant Anstead's latest series captures the start of a dream project for the car lover — and his biggest personal risk to date.
The 5-part docuseries Radford Reborn (streaming April 14 on Speedvision), follows the TV host and master mechanic as he creates a supercar for the British heritage brand Radford alongside his business partner and Formula One champ Jensen Button.
"This is personally a huge risk for me," Anstead tells PEOPLE of the high stakes business venture in an exclusive interview. "We have seven people, and we privately funded this. We are doing it. We're risking everything."
The lean team's masterpiece is the Radford Type 62-2, "a reimagined version of the fabled Lotus Type 62," according to a press release. And, spoiler alert, it already won a major award at the motorsports festival Goodwood, beating out Ferrari, McLaren, Lamborghini, Bugatti and others, Anstead notes.
"I knew that we were taking on a monumentally difficult project in an industry that's really tough, because we are up against some big brands with some big funding," he says. "We just had to collectively believe in what we were do doing."
While it was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream to put the art of coach building in the spotlight, the process was, at times, a harrowing one for the star. "I'm not sure that comes across as much as it should on the show," he jokes. "Not as much as the sleepless nights I have."
The series will be a big departure for fans who know Anstead from shows like discovery+'s Celebrity IOU: Joyride and HGTV's Christina on the Coast. He says it reflects his desire to create something more real and raw.
"I like making authentic TV, and this is authentic TV," he says." I'm not a great fan of people that make overly polished, edited TV. You'll never find me in a show that has a fake deadline or a forced storyline. There's no scripting. A lot of other shows do that. I think that's disappointing."
TV cameras aside, so far, the project has been a success. "We are now moving into production, Anstead tells PEOPLE from the new Radford headquarters in Costa Mesa, California. "We've sold a number of cars to collectors all over the world, and we are now delivering those cars."
And Anstead is already planning for future seasons. "It's been quite restrained in this first season, but this was a big, big deal for all of us."
Radford Reborn will be available to stream on multiple services via Speedvision on April 14.
