A Steve McQueen beach buggy, Eric Clapton Ferrari, Jackie Collins Ford Mustang and ex-Shirley Bassey Mercedes will be just a handful of the star cars at London Concours, which takes place from 4-6 June at the Honourable Artillery Company in the heart of the City of London.
They will be part of a special Carnaby Street class at the eighth running of the event, which will focus on the cars of the ‘faces’ when London was the cultural epicentre of the world.
The McQueen Meyers Manx is the very one driven by the King of Cool in The Thomas Crown Affair, which also the subject of a full feature article in Octane 243 when Mark Dixon drove it on the California dunes.
Clapton’s Ferrari is the 1969 Ferrari 365 GTC Berlinetta he bought after falling in love with the one that George Harrison had (there’s a familiar ring to that tale that goes beyond cars!). ‘I’d never seen one in the flesh before, and my heart melted,’ said the guitar hero. Other ‘it’ cars from the era include the Aston Martin DB6, Mercedes 190 SL roadster, Ford Mustang, and a 1965 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud.
Andrew Evans, managing director of London Concours, said: ‘There’s never been a better time to remind ourselves of the decade when Britain captured the imagination of the world with homegrown talent that spawned a vibrant new era of music, fashion, film and cars, which led to Time magazine dubbing London the ‘Swinging City’. The cars of the rich and famous on show in our Carnaby Street display are a drive back in time to those halcyon days of innovation, prosperity and optimism.’
He continued: ‘Guests to the HAC will be treated to an unprecedented array of cars, along with a decadent range of food and drink options, and a carefully curated line-up of luxury brands and boutiques. London Concours 2024 is set to be another occasion of total automotive indulgence.’
The event will have a host of other classes including one for purple cars, great British racing cars, Zagatos, hypercars, legendary V12s, Chevy Corvettes and much more. For tickets and info click here.