'We live aboard a Lothian Bus on an Australian beach'

Kim Ricardo and Ted Dwight restored the derelict bus after finding it for sale online

“As soon as we laid eyes on it, we were in love.”

For Kim Ricardo, there is plenty to be enamoured with about her living situation. Metres from the palm-fringed beach on the peninsula of Sinclair Bay, Queensland, she wakes up every morning to sweeping views across the glassy water to the lush green headland of Cape Gloucester.

However, the object of her and partner Ted Dwight’s affection is not their stunning natural surroundings, but the number 16 Lothian Bus they have made their home.

Eight months ago, the Australian couple decided to live aboard the 1960’s Leyland Atlantean after discovering it online, decaying in a garden.

It has now been reborn more than 9,500 miles from its daily route, winding its way through Edinburgh from Bonaly at the foot of the Pentland Hills to Silverknowes.

The bus was in a derelict state when Kim and Ted bought it

“We were initially looking for a single-decker bus, but we saw this one for sale online and were instantly hooked,” Kim, 58, said.

“It was in a pretty sorry condition when we found it. It needed a lot of work done.

“But we love it, the more we went into the history, we realised how amazing it was.”

The bus originally entered service for what was then the Edinburgh Corporation in 1966 before being sold off in the 1980s.

It was bought by the owners of a berry-picking farm near Dundee to ferry workers from their accommodation, but in 1993, it changed hands again and was restored by two enthusiasts.

Its next stop was as an exhibit in Dunfermline’s Vintage Bus Museum, where it was also used as the model for a cast iron toy.

A buyer in Bangalee, New South Wales, about 100 miles south of Sydney, had it shipped over in 2014, but it was nine years before Kim and Ted found it for sale on the Gumtree website.

Parts of the original interior, including the rear seats, have been incorporated into the remodel

The couple spent about AU$ 35,000 (£18,277) buying the bus, and a further AU$ 60,000 (£31,332) giving it a new, distinctive interior.

The chipped, exterior paintwork and panelling have been restored, while the inside has been remodelled in a South East Asian style.

However, several of the original features have been retained.

The destination sign on the front still lists stops in Tollcross, Princes Street and Leith Walk, while the burgundy leather seats on the lower deck were converted into a dining area.

The couple were even able to track down a 75-year-old London-based partsmaster to make custom rubber seals for the windows in order to keep the bus watertight.

The bus remains road legal thanks to an engine renovation several years ago, but with a few age-related quirks.

The couple said they spent less than the price of an average flat renovating the bus

“The mileometer says it has done about 31,000, but the speedo doesn’t work properly,” Ted, 61, said.

“We tried to keep as many of the original features as possible. We had to get rid of some of them, obviously, to put in a shower, a kitchen, a toilet.

“But it is liveable. We probably spent about the same on buying the bus and renovating it as it would be to buy an average flat. Now we have a beautiful, moveable flat that we can drive anywhere.”

Kim and Ted were keen to retain some original features, including the destination display

For now, the bus is situated in idyllic surroundings, where the couple work as caretakers, tending to the land and maintaining six holiday homes set over 300 acres in exchange for a space to park up.

However, the bus is not the only Scottish link nearby.

Across the water is an uninterrupted view of a mountain known locally as Ben Lomond.

Unlike its Scottish cousin, there is little chance of this version becoming snow-capped, with temperatures in the Australian winter hitting close to 30C (87F).

The couple wake up every morning to a view of the Australian Ben Lomond

Kim and Ted have never visited Edinburgh to pay the £2 fare for the experience of gliding down Leith Walk aboard the modern day 16 for themselves.

But few could blame those staring out at the dreich Scottish summer from the top deck of their commutes for being a little envious.

“It is very secluded here, very peaceful,” Kim said.

“The water is so clear, we have a lot of tropical fish. We go fishing or crabbing or just swim in the sea when we are not walking the dogs to relax. Then we are back on the bus to sleep.

“There are dolphins that come and visit us too. It really is paradise.”