The Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional
When was the last time you saw a Saab Sonnett? 1/320s F3.2 45mm ISO 64.
One of the things I’ve really missed over the past year is car shows. Whether it’s travelling further afield or attending a local one, they give a great opportunity to get in contact with fellow car enthusiasts and see all sorts of rare and interesting cars in the metal. The great thing is that everyone is always so keen to talk about their car, often with stories of stressful, yet rewarding restorations as well as some incredible on-the-road adventures.
All sorts of weird and wonderful cars turn up at events like this, including this Talbot Matra Rancho. 1/200s F3.2 36mm ISO 64.
One event which stands apart from the rest is The Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional (HFU). Most car shows will be choc full of the top stuff: Porsches, Ferraris, Lamborghinis and perhaps even a few race cars. However, this event is centred around the more ordinary stuff you or your dad may have owned back in the day. Things that were common as muck when new but have become frightfully scarce as more and more get scrapped with each passing year.
Even many of the cars that aren’t entered into the Concour de l’Ordinaire arrive in superb condition, this Lancia Beta included. 1/200s F3.2 24mm ISO 64.
There always seems to be an extra appeal to these cars. Yes, everyone loves the supercars that sat on the bedroom wall in poster form – but there is often a special sort of nostalgia for the cars people used everyday all those years ago. I’ve certainly experienced it with owning my Peugeot 205. Sometimes when I am out and about people will come up and compliment the car, saying they owned one back in the day and had fond memories of them (and occasionally not so fond memories of crashing one).
The Concours de l’Ordinaire was populated by a great range of cars from Fords to Nissans to Fiats, there was certainly a great range of cars for the judges to pour over. 1/500s F3.2 29mm ISO 64.
I went in 2018 when it was still held at the stunning grounds of Stowe school but, as you can imagine, the event was a fairly no-frills affair with cars lining up on the lawn and the headline attraction being the Concours de l’Ordinaire. Happen to have a Vauxhall Cavalier or a Mk3 Ford Escort in spotless condition? Now’s your chance to get the recognition you deserve. But that’s not the only award on hand, there’s even an award for the best picnic called the Feast of the Unexceptional. How very British.
The Stowe School grounds make for a wonderful setting that was well worth exploring on their own. I am sure the Grimsthorpe Castle grounds for the next event will also impress. 1/160s F3.2 46mm ISO 64.
In all honesty the show was also worth visiting just to be able to explore the grounds of Stowe School which had vast fields, a scenic river and some impressive outdoor buildings including the Temple of Friendship and the Chinese House. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to see these this year as the event has moved to Grimsthorpe Castle, but as the name suggests I doubt we’ll come away disappointed. Held on Saturday 31st July, Entry is free for the first 999 classic cars with a further 1000 tickets and 500 for people arriving in modern cars at £5.75. If you do have a classic more ordinary hiding away somewhere then I do hope to see you there, just make sure to bring your best picnic blanket!
Panoramic of the event from the steps of Stowe House. Thankfully the weather was good that day for everyone to enjoy the classics and their picnics. 1/500s F3.2 26mm ISO 64.
If you want to see a bit more from the event in 2018 then make sure to check out the video that we made for Espuela Grande: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c48STb8OPx8.
For more information on this year’s event click here.
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