On June 19-21, 2026, Magneto and Octane magazines will be running an all-new event, Concours des Légendes, at Wilton House near Salisbury, Wiltshire in the UK’s south-west. It will be high-end car show meets literary-style festival, focused as much on the people as the cars.
Wilton House is the ancestral home of the 18th Earl of Pembroke, better known as petrolhead Will Pembroke (below, left) in the car world. He has owned a wildly varied selection of machinery, including a Bugatti Veyron, and his current stable ranges from a Low-Chassis Invicta to a Nissan GTR.
Wilton House already hosts the popular Wilton Wake Up breakfast club car events, and it is also known for its highly successful Wilton Classic & Supercar Festivals that it hosted a few years ago. However, the Wilton House Concours des Légendes is something different, concentrating on the fascinating stories of the automotive world. There will be guest speakers, spectacular cars and motorcycles, motoring art and even a display of some of the most important Formula 1 crash helmets of the past four decades.
Crucially, there will be on-stage talks in covered marquees on many of the cars, bikes and art. We will have plenty more special guests to announce, but some of those already confirmed include 1970 Le Mans winner Richard Attwood, Formula 1 driver-turned-artist Stefan Johansson plus designers Peter Stevens, Wayne Burgess and Ken Okuyama.
Auction house Dore & Rees will be running three sales, for classic cars, automobilia, and watches and jewellery. It will also be bringing along stars of popular BBC programme Antiques Roadshow to talk with guests.
All this in the magnificent Wilton House and its extensive grounds. Visitors will be able to tour the house, famed not only for its renowned art collection – including works by Rembrandt, Van Dyck and Rubens – but also for its use as a set for TV dramas Bridgerton and The Crown, along with many films such as Mrs Brown, Pride & Prejudice, Tomb Raider and Johnny English Reborn.
There will also be the chance to have the story of your car told on stage, with Hagerty-sponsored Car Stories. If you have a model with an interesting history – whether related to you or further back in its life – then please email us at [email protected].
Most of all, this is intended as a relaxed, entertaining and interesting alternative to the usual car events. Adult tickets will start from £65 per day, plus concessions. For commercial partnerships, or to nominate your car for display, please email [email protected].
Please see here for tickets and more information on the Wilton House Concours des Légendes.
