I attended the UK’s most boring car show and I loved every minute

Where in the world are you ever going to see a group of adults getting dewy-eyed over a 25-year-old Volkswagen Polo? Or find a pair of teenagers fangirling over a Ford Orion, or hear people booing an immaculate and desirable Porsche 911? Well, that’s exactly what you’ll find at the Festival of the Unexceptional.

You’ll also find me, because FotU is a high point of my yearly calendar and one of my must-attend events every year. I had a blast at the 2026 event, joining 4,500 people at Grimsthorpe Castle in Lincolnshire in celebrating the sort of cars that you just don’t see any more.

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Festival of the Unexceptional is a car show that applauds the sort of cars you used to see all the time. Walking around the neat rows of cars, you’re guaranteed a nostalgia trip no matter how old you are.

With over 2,500 cars in attendance, this year’s festival held untold delights for people like me, who find ordinary, achievable cars to be much more interesting than supercars or exotica. It’s a trend reflected by the market – interest in so-called ‘modern classics’ and ‘youngtimers’ is growing, fuelled in large part by Gen X and millennial buyers seeking everyday usability and the nostalgia of cars they remember from their youth.

The relative affordability of these cars is another key attraction to cash-strapped 30-plus year olds. Owning a true classic like a Jaguar E-Type demands time and patience. It requires off-street parking, a hook-up with a specialist garage, and the money to fabricate new parts where old ones no longer exist.

But for the people at FotU, no such issues exist with a 1996 Vauxhall Corsa. It’s weatherproof, able to keep up with traffic, and you can street-park it with no fear whatsoever. Better yet, when something breaks, you can have spares delivered from EuroCarParts within a few hours, and fit them yourself with a screwdriver and a bit of elbow grease.

I always enjoy walking around the show with my own memories. My Year 1 teacher drove a Hyundai Elantra – there’s one parked two rows away. I have vivid memories of family holidays in the back of a Renault Espace, just like the one sat in the Concours. It’s a real love-in for the cars of my youth, even the ones that we don’t remember particularly fondly.

My own chariot for the show was a rather dashing 1998 Volvo S90. I’d borrowed it from Volvo’s own fleet – my two oldtimers were proving a bit temperamental this year – and it was such a delight hearing people walk past it with their own memories, poking their heads through the window to see if it ‘still smelled like a Volvo’ and snapping picture after picture.

The crown jewels of the show are to be found in the castle’s courtyard. This is the Concours de l’Ordinaire – a play on typical Concours d’Elegance events – and it’s where a handpicked group of vehicles face a panel of judges to decide which is the most ordinary of all.

Third place this year went to a 2001 Ford Focus, originally belonging to the owner’s grandfather and lovingly preserved. Second place, a rare 1992 Toyota Previa in fastidiously maintained conditions – with the period sweet wrappers and receipts that accompanied its purchase framed alongside it.

But the overall winner was a 2001 Volkswagen Polo in lowly 49hp ‘E’ spec. Owned and loved for 20 years, it was the owner’s first and so far only car. Rocking 176,000 miles and still daily driven, it’s an amazing display of what the show’s all about.

My personal highlights included a fantastic Matra Rancho, a rare Volkswagen Polo Harlequin and a Renault 30 with the most incredible headlight wipers I’ve ever seen.

The event will be back in 2027, and if you have an old car that you love but you’ve never thought posh or fancy enough for a motor show – come along!

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