Loz has just this minute come off the phone after being in touch with our nearest DVLA office in Portsmouth. When she asked the question re. the validity/legality of a U.K. Drivers License being used in Turkey, she was informed that the matter would HAVE to be discussed with the relevant authority in Turkey. There would/could be HUGE problems in the case of an accident/other motoring offence, where it would/could be deemed that the holder of the U.K. license was, in fact, driving a vehicle without the proper legal documents, with all of the legal penalties that this offence would incur.
There was a definitive NO to the question re. renewing the U.K. license to an Ex-pat living in Turkey. The renewal is only accepted from persons who are resident in the U.K. , whether or not these persons are living abroad and having a secondary U.K address or not .
The fact that many Ex-pats have a U.K. address, ( to be used, I suppose) as some sort of 'bolt-hole', is therefore totally irrelevant.
I hope this has been of help.
Gordy.