Hampton Court Concours of Elegance 2018

Of the royal venues selected for the annual Concours of Elegance, Hampton Court seems to be the firm favourite – judging by the third visit to the palace since the event began in 2012.

Always a risky factor at British concours, the weather chose to smile on the 1,000 cars and 13,000 visitors gathered in the palace grounds, albeit outshone by the quality of the entries. This year, five of the awards were given by era, with the winning car in the 1930s class – the Alfa 8C 2300 Short Chassis Spider (pictured, top) – also scooping the (arguably even greater?) honour of being the K500 team’s personal favourite. 

Unusually, the Concours of Elegance Best of Show is chosen by the owners of the main concours cars, with the Mercedes-Benz S-Type Barker ‘Boat Tail’ (pictured, above) pulling the most votes. Clearly blue is in vogue for Autumn 2018.

If you were there yourself, our photo gallery will help to remind you of a glorious day out. If not, console yourself by breathing in the atmosphere of the royal gardens and some of the world’s most beautiful cars, as captured by the lens of renowned automotive photographer Tim Scott. 

Meanwhile, for the competitively minded, the full list of awards is as follows:

Best in Show – Mercedes-Benz S-Type Barker ‘Boat Tail’
Pre-1920s – Isotta Fraschini Tipo A FENG
1930s – Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Short Chassis Spider
1940s/’50s – Maserati 300s
1960s – Porsche 917K
1970-onwards: Lamborghini Miura
The RAC Club Trophy – Alvis Speed 25 Drophead Coupé
The RAC Spirit of Motoring – Katie Forrest and her 1912 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost
The Jaguar Trophy – Jaguar XK120
The Bentley Trophy (pre-1965) – Bentley S2 Saloon
The Bentley Trophy (post-1965) – Bentley Continental T
Bridge of Weir British Legends – Morgan 4/4
Future Classics – Rolls-Royce Sweptail