W&p rip
 

after announcing a show this year the company that runs it has cancelled the show, I think permanently. It has become insolvent. I don't think they can recover as their business plan drove participants away. It's nice to remember the better days when Rex ran it.

I think we can also chalk that up as another Brexit Bonus - the queues for customs clearance and enormous quantities of paperwork required to travel from the EU to the UK and back (not to mention the nightmare of import duty and VAT for the traders - who have no idea what (if anything) they are going to sell or its eventual price)- will have locked out most travel to/from Europe.

(After 41 years, the Orient Express has withdrawn its service from the UK because of the paperwork, visas, etc. so if you now want to travel on it you have to join the train in Paris.)

But still: Blue Passports, taking back control, Rule Brittania and all that. :fry:

Chris.

War more than Peace
 

The event in question has been the subject of long running discussion on the MV forums , there were various opinions being aired beginning from back in the Hop Farm days. Opinions were for and against with some complaints about poor on-site facilities , exorbitant price entry for military vehicle owners and poor management.

Not sure of the situation now but the original Hop Farm W&P show was a registered private business , not a charity event. A friend in the UK had a look at the business registration records and found W&P show listed as a private business with two owners.

I would not take any restored vehicle to an event that charges entry fees . The majority of vintage car shows here usually have free entry for restored vehicles. Without restored vehicles attending , these classic car shows would not be a viable operation. Charging for entry is charging the owners an extra cost above the restoration cost.

I believe the original show began with the IMPS military group. It was popular and began to expand. At some time Rex Cadman started the War & Peace show. It was free entry for exhibitors and reenactors. A few years ago Rex sold the show and I think the new owner chose the wrong business model.

Chris is correct in that Brexit has changed the UK, not necessarily for the better.

I used to be able to buy wine from the French Foreign Legion winery in Province but not anymore. :whinge

Though Brexit certainly hasnt helped much other than the colour of the passport, it is unfair to blame the W&P demise on Brexit when the "Yorkshire Wartime Experience" event manage very successfully regardless.

Wern't the two originals, Shaun Hindle's father and Colin Brookes?

Did you have to sit bolt upright reciting every word on the label before being allowed to sip?

( but back to topic ) All good things must come to an end. I was raised in a house that attended annual sporting events. Sometimes my parents organized and ran them. Sometimes they were just participants. It requires momentum to do them well, and relies on patience from those who sign up. Some years the weather cooperates! Others the rain or wind makes an absolute hash of the schedule. Volunteers or paid staff are only willing a few times before they lose interest.

Actually it wasn't free entry for the exhibitors or just about anybody else who went through the gates at Hop Farm. The event was held on private land and the land owner charged per head + camping fees. But that's OK , the event was a business venture and we all need to make a living. The Corowa swim-in event here has optional camping fees: If you choose to, you can book and stay at a Motel outside the camp ground and the next day walk into the camp ground for free.

The war and fleece show.
http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...ghlight=Notton

Oui, en francais aussi! Can you imagine retiring from Shilo and moving to a vineyard in the Niagara Penisula? :drunk:
https://francetoday.com/food-drink/w...-legions-wine/

Back on topic: I feel the shift to regional shows is good. We have a few here in Kent over the summer and I know other areas in the UK have similar. Costs are cheaper and no queue for the loo.

I had dreams of that, but have to report that there is no leaving Shilo other than on a slab. So I will continue to freeze for half my life with only short escapes to Mexico in the winter.

Fwiw, I mostly only take the larger vehicles to shows that pay the transport costs. The exception are local shows that I can drive the vehicles to. I certainly cant, nor ever could afford the transport costs. A MV show that charges admission, and charges me to bring a vehicle??? No.

I had a similar offer from one of the cruise nights in the nearby city (20kms away) of Brandon. I had the carrier at cruise night, loaded for battle. It caught the eye of a lady who holds the "World of Wheels" car show in Winnipeg, about 200km away. She actually offered to let me display it in World of Wheels for free as a featured vehicle, whereas most of the regular enthusiasts would have to pay. The public also pays a pretty hefty fee to view the vehicles. I would have been on the hook for the transportation of my carrier as well as for any days off that I would have to take to be there.



I declined the generous offer.

The W&P owner did pay for certain kit to be collected... but their organisation and communication was appalling.

I was booked to attend one of the shows at Folkestone, an agreement was made for a low loader to come to mine to collect my kit... at their cost.

I spent 2 days prepping everything for collection.

My experience was along these lines

• Monday - Planned collection... no show.
• Tuesday - re-planned collection... no show.
• Thursday - re-planned collection... no show.
• Friday - can we re-plan for Tuesday next week please

I did not attend.