The Big Picture
8 halls, 75,000 visitors, 1 amazing revival!
The biggest moment from this year’s Classic Motor Show at the NEC.
More than 75,000 enthusiasts attended the Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show in early November – 40 years on from when the very first International Motor Show was held in the, then, newly constructed National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham. This year’s classic car extravaganza included a number of firsts and anniversary celebrations, including Harris Mann’s 80th birthday, the launch of the Reliant Scimitar, the Jaguar XJ6 and, on the PC stand, a ‘two TR’ celebration of the 50th anniversary of the creation of British Leyland.
The Discovery Live stage was hosted by Ant Anstead and Mike Brewer from TV’S
Wheeler Dealers, along with classic celebrities Paul Cowland, Jimmy Deville, Vicki Butler-henderson and Tony Jardine. The star of the Live Stage, however, was Ron Jones – the long-time owner of the 1951 Riley RMA brought back to life during the show.
The car had lived in Ron’s shed for over 46 years before being taken on by PC editor Danny Hopkins. Ron, with his wife and daughter, attended on all three days and at the emotional climax it was he who took the keys to start the RMA for the first time since he took it off the road in 1971.
Sadly, despite the incredible efforts of the PC team, our partners at CBR Motorbodies and the experts from the Riley RM Club, who provided stalwart support (and could not have worked harder) throughout the weekend, the RMA caught, but didn’t fire.
‘I doesn’t matter,’ said Ron. ‘What the PC team and the Riley RM club have achieved
is miraculous. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.’
During Motor Show Week in 1978, in excess of 900,000 people were treated to a first glimpse of the Carlton, Royale, Porsche 928, Chrysler Horizon and TVR 3000S. The 2018 version included all of those cars and many which, like the Riley, came with decades of love and passion attached to them. It was a classic anniversary year, and it is still THE classic show.