Supercars and speed legends head for Bridgerton stately home

This summer, Concours des Légendes will bring land speed heroes, Le Mans winners, rare cars, designers, artists, authors, auctions and a supercar drive-in to Wilton House, the Wiltshire estate seen in Bridgerton, The Crown and Tomb Raider. Motoring Editor Mark G. Whitchurch previews a new show mixing priceless cars, famous faces and rare public access to one of Britain’s best-known screen estates

The Wiltshire stately home seen in Bridgerton, The Crown, Tomb Raider and Emma is preparing to swap period drama for petrolheads as a new three-day motoring event arrives this summer.

Concours des Légendes will take place at Wilton House, near Salisbury, from June 19 to 21, bringing together land speed record heroes, Le Mans winners, celebrated designers, rare cars, contemporary automotive art, book talks, auctions and a Sunday supercar drive-in.

The 14,000-acre estate is the home of William Herbert, 18th Earl of Pembroke, whose own car collection is expected to form part of the weekend. The house, which has also appeared in productions including Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, The Madness of King George, Barry Lyndon and Blackadder, will be open in part to ticket holders during the event.

Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, one of Britain’s best-known car collectors, is also due to attend, with cars from his Ten Tenths collection expected to be represented at the event.

Unlike Pebble Beach, the American benchmark for concours glamour, or Villa d’Este, the historic Italian gathering on Lake Como, the new Wiltshire event is being pitched as a broader motoring and cultural weekend built around cars, collectors, racing figures, designers, artists, authors and the stories behind them.

Across the long weekend, visitors will be able to see important cars up close, hear from the drivers, designers and collectors linked to them, visit art and automobilia displays, watch craft demonstrations, attend talks and gain access to parts of the house itself.

One of the main attractions will be a gathering of land speed record figures, including Andy Green OBE, the current world record holder, and Richard Noble OBE, who held the title before him. Green broke the sound barrier on land in 1997 in ThrustSSC, reaching 763mph, while Noble set the previous benchmark in Thrust2 in 1983.

Engineer and TV motorcycle specialist Allen Millyard will also add to the record-breaking theme. Millyard set a tandem speed record of 183.50mph with TV presenter and co-host Henry Cole, who also holds a Bonneville land speed record on a pre-1955 750cc Brough Superior motorcycle.

The motorsport line-up includes Ross Brawn, Richard Attwood, Derek Bell, Stefan Johansson and Lamborghini test driver Valentino Balboni.

Brawn’s appearance brings one of the most influential figures in modern Formula One to the event. His career spans Ferrari’s dominant Michael Schumacher era and the 2009 Brawn GP world championship victory.

Attwood, winner of the 1970 Le Mans 24 Hours, and Bell, a five-time Le Mans winner, will help anchor the event’s endurance racing programme. Balboni, Lamborghini’s development driver for 40 years, is expected to discuss his work on models including the Miura, Countach and Gallardo.

The concours will also feature designers Peter Stevens, Frank Stephenson, Wayne Burgess, Ken Okuyama and Kevin Rice. Their appearances are intended to give visitors direct insight into how major cars are conceived, shaped and developed.

The event will include three main stages for interviews, discussions and owner stories, as well as a literary stage with author talks and book signings.

The Legends Stage will focus on motorsport figures and landmark careers, while the Conversation Stage will examine the future of mobility, environmental change, industrial design and the changing relationship between people and machines.

The cars themselves will be selected for history, significance and story value as well as rarity with expected highlights including a stolen-and-recovered Ferrari Daytona with links to the underworld, cars from the British Motor Museum, selected vehicles from Nick Mason’s Ten Tenths collection, a celebrity-owned Lamborghini Miura and Lancia Aurelia, a historically significant Porsche 917 and a number of other record-breaking machines.

Visitors will also be able to see contemporary supercars and hypercars during the Sunday Supercar Drive-In. The convoy, led by the Earl of Pembroke, will travel from Winchester before parading onto the Wilton showfield on June 21.

The arts programme will be a central part of the weekend. An Artists Pavilion will bring together painters, sculptors, photographers and designers whose work is linked to automotive subjects.

Former Ferrari and McLaren Formula One driver Stefan Johansson will appear both as a speaker and an exhibiting artist. Johansson, also a Le Mans winner, has developed a second career in art over three decades, moving from text-based portraiture to abstract racing-corner works and more recent pointillist pieces.

The Wilton House cloisters will host a major display of racing helmets curated by Joe Twyman. Visitors will also have access to parts of Wilton House, which is home to one of the UK’s notable private art collections. The house is not expected to be open to the public at any other time in 2026.

Auction house Dore & Rees will hold three sales in the estate’s historic riding school, covering cars, automobilia, jewellery and watches. Experts involved include Marc Allum and Dore & Rees founder Lee Young.

There will also be live craft and skills demonstrations, a retail village, food and drink, a Nyetimber bar, manufacturer and dealer displays, including Morgan Motor Company and Lamborghini, and a curated selection of automobilia.

Concours des Légendes content curator and Magneto magazine editorial director David Lillywhite said: “Concours des Légendes isn’t a typical concours and is about much more than ‘just’ extraordinary cars – it’s about the people, the stories and the moments that have shaped automotive history.

“These are the individuals who didn’t just witness history – whether in motor sport or automotive development – they made it, and we’re incredibly proud to give our visitors the chance to hear their stories first-hand.

“So many events attract historic vehicles with an amazing provenance or engineering, but visitors are often left knowing little of their histories or the people behind them. Concours des Légendes at Wilton House will bring those stories to life this summer through workshops, keynote speakers and an authoritative focus on every car.”

The event is being organised by Hothouse Media, the UK publisher and events company behind Octane, Magneto, the International Historic Motoring Awards and Concours on Savile Row.

Concours des Légendes — Essential Information

For anyone planning a visit, the event is being set up as a full day out at Wilton House, with cars, talks, art, food, drink, shopping and access to parts of the estate included across the programme. It is close to Salisbury, reachable by train from London Waterloo in about 90 minutes, and accessible by road from the M3, A303 and A30. Tickets start from £65, with weekend, supercar and VIP options also available. The key details about Concours des Légendes are below.

What: A new three-day motoring event bringing together rare and significant cars, land speed record figures, Le Mans winners, collectors, designers, artists, authors, auctions, live talks, food, drink and a Sunday Supercar Drive-In.

Where: Wilton House, Wilton, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP2 0BJ.

The event takes place in the grounds of Wilton House, the ancestral home of the Earl of Pembroke, set within landscaped parkland and the wider 14,000-acre Wilton Estate. The house is also known for its film and television appearances, including Bridgerton, The Crown, Emma, Tomb Raider, Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Barry Lyndon and Blackadder.

When: June 19 to 21, 2026.

The inaugural Concours des Légendes will run across three days, with displays, interviews, art, literature, demonstrations, auctions and motorsport personalities on the lawns of Wilton House.

How to get there

By train: Salisbury Station is the nearest major rail hub, with direct South Western Railway services from London Waterloo taking around 90 minutes. There are also rail links from Exeter, Bristol and Southampton. Taxis and shuttle services operate from the station to Wilton House, with the journey taking around 10 minutes.

By car: Wilton House is on the A36, a short distance from Salisbury, and is accessible from the M3, A303 and A30. On-site parking is available for ticket holders, with dedicated areas for VIP guests and Supercar Drive-In participants.

By air: Southampton Airport is the closest international airport, around 45 minutes by road. Heathrow is around 90 minutes away.

Tickets

General admission day ticket: From £65. Includes access to the concours lawns, Conversation Stage, Literary Stage, Artists Pavilion, Retail Avenue and food courts.

Weekend pass: From £80. Includes two-day access to stages, displays and live sessions.

Supercar Drive-In entry: From £75 per car. Includes priority parking on the Supercar Drive-In lawn, full event access for driver and passenger, and a Nyetimber reception.

VIP packages: From £245. Includes VIP parking, fast-track entry, access to the VIP hospitality lounge, a Nyetimber reception, three-course lunch with wine and afternoon sweet treats.

Food and drink: Visitors can expect artisan food courts, regional producers, a Nyetimber bar and premium hospitality lounges for hospitality ticket holders.

Website and booking: Full programme, ticketing and travel information: concoursdeslegendes.co.uk

READ MORE: Bon anniversaire, Rétromobile: Paris’ great motor show turns 50. At Rétromobile’s 50th anniversary, motoring editor Mark G. Whitchurch reports from Paris, where the show halls and four major auctions together revealed why Ferrari’s analogue supercars are now commanding record prices and attracting a new class of global buyer.

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_{Main image: A classic Ferrari outside Wilton House, near Salisbury, where the inaugural Concours des Légendes will take place from June 19 to 21, 2026. Picture: Amy Shore Photography}