Photography by Nat Twiss
It was just ‘Concours Weekend’ here in Europe. With the excellent Salon Privé and the Concours of Elegance occurring on the same weekend in England, and Chantilly just over the Channel, classic car enthusiasts of the monied variety are completely spoiled for choice. But really, can anyone compete with a show hosted at a residence of the Queen?
You might think with so much happening worldwide this summer the pickings would be slim, but all you have to do to dispel that notion is take a jaunt up the Long Walk towards the ancient castle and Royal residence, head through the vast stone entryway to the quadrangle of the upper ward, and find yourself marvelling at 60 of the finest cars in the world. It’s a unique setting, for some truly unique cars. Coachbuilt pre-war behemoths, with decadent mother of pearl interiors and incredible art deco design sit next to the up and coming Concours challengers of the 1980s. They almost make the Royal carriages on display look pedestrian.
And don’t think they’re just lawn ornaments: the ex-Graham Hill 250 GTO Ferrari might be competing, but it has some hastily-repaired tapework on the front wheel arch, and even some of the coachbuilt oldies have a history. The Alfa Romeo Figoni Coupé took a class with at Le Mans in 1935, albeit with a different body.
Dominating my attention was the 1936 Hispano-Suiza H6C Dubonnet Xenia. This is the first ever car to have curved glass, and with the incredible aviation-inspired art deco design, it looked truly unlike anything else at the show. There’s also a familiar face to Petrolicious fans, in the one-off Ferrari Testarossa Spider Valeo that we spent some time with in Paris earlier this year.
It beggars belief sometimes at how many fantastic cars seem to appear out of nowhere for events like these, but they keep on coming. We can’t wait to be back next year to see what else rears its head!
What was your pick of the show?
