Oxford Events
Wilderness Festival 2026: four days of music, food, art and wild escapism
Audi presents Wilderness 2026 welcomed thousands of revellers to Cornbury Park for the festival’s landmark fifteenth edition, delivering four days of music, arts, food, wellness and adventure.
There is something deliberately unruly about Wilderness. For four days, Cornbury Park becomes a place where the usual rules of the weekend seem to loosen: world-class musicians share the programme with emerging artists, Michelin-starred chefs with long-table feasts, woodland dancefloors with yoga and cold plunges, while cabaret, comedy, conversation and children’s adventures unfold alongside the headline performances.
For its fifteenth edition, Wilderness brought together critically acclaimed artists, musicians, producers, performers, thinkers, teachers, writers, chefs and creators for a weekend celebrating joyful hedonism, creativity and escapism.
The festival opened with the first of its many musical surprises, as Carl Cox took over The Atrium for a special one-off Funk & Soul set, setting the tone for a weekend in which the unexpected was almost as important as the headline acts.
As the sun went down over Cornbury Park, the Wilderness Stage became the centre of the festival’s musical programme. Eats Everything delivered an electrifying set before legendary DJ Carl Cox closed Friday night with a powerhouse performance. Saturday brought a change of pace with rising pop star Chloe Qisha, Belgian electronic pioneers Soulwax, indie-pop favourites Saint Etienne and the iconic Scissor Sisters, who lit up the main stage.
Sunday opened with American disco-funk outfit Say She She, before the Wilderness Stage became the setting for one of the festival’s most significant moments: SISTERS: Curated by Annie Lennox, which made its global festival premiere at Wilderness 2026.
The one-off collaboration between Annie Lennox and global feminist organisation The Circle, the festival’s main charity partner for 2026, brought together Lennox and a hand-picked line-up of guest performers including Jessie Ware, Benedict Wong, Becky Sikasa and Ríoghnach Connolly.
The performance moved through some of Lennox’s best-known songs, including Little Bird, There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart), performed as a duet with Jessie Ware, and Here Comes The Rain Again. Then came a collective moment as all the guests, including Sunday’s headliners The Last Dinner Party, joined Lennox on stage for Sisters Are Doin’ It for Themselves.
The show culminated in Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), bringing the festival’s enormous main stage together with a message that extended far beyond the performance itself. The special show raised funds to support The Circle’s work tackling gender-based violence and economic injustice worldwide.
For The Last Dinner Party, the evening marked another milestone. The Mercury Prize-shortlisted band closed Wilderness 2026 in spectacular style, making their first-ever headline festival performance the final major musical statement of the weekend.
The big stages, however, were only one part of the story.
The weekend was packed with exclusive and unexpected performances, including a secret set from Jake Shears at the Tia Maria bar and two high-energy intimate shows from Professor Green at the Audi Haven. Somewhere else on site, festival-goers could stumble across another surprise appearance from Carl Cox, who brought a secret set to The Riddle.
The Valley once again cemented its reputation as one of the UK’s most iconic woodland dancefloors. Beneath the trees, Groove Armada, Grammy-nominated producer Nic Fanciulli, Layo & Bushwacka!, 2manydjs, Olive F and Delilah kept festival-goers dancing deep into the night.
At The Riddle, the atmosphere was more intimate but no less energetic, with Luke Howard of Horse Meat Disco, Crazy P and Eats Everything providing a carefully curated soundtrack alongside the secret appearance from Carl Cox.
The Atrium became another of the festival’s standout hubs. Alongside its opening Funk & Soul set from Carl Cox, Rinse FM resident Ella Knight brought soulful disco, house and UK garage to the venue, while Women in Jazz presented the spectacular New Regency Orchestra.
The 18-piece Afro-Cuban jazz ensemble, inspired by 1950s New York and powered by some of London’s finest Latin and jazz musicians, provided one of the festival’s many reminders that Wilderness is as interested in musical discovery as it is in headline names.
The Wilderness Orchestra returned with its much-loved God’s Jukebox, performing orchestral arrangements of audience-requested classics, while multi-award-winning comedy troupe POLICE COPS returned with a reloaded and supercharged version of its critically acclaimed blockbuster.
On Sunday, the Atrium also hosted a special live edition of The Guilty Feminist, with host Deborah Frances-White joined by The Circle CEO Raakhi Shah and Sikh Women’s Aid Chair Sukhvinder Kaur for a powerful conversation around global feminism, allyship and turning ideals into action as part of SISTERS: Curated by Annie Lennox.
For emerging musicians, The Dive provided a dedicated home throughout the weekend, showcasing some of the UK’s most exciting rising talent, including Bleech 9:3, Tooth, Little Grandad, The North, Slag, Cruush, Basht. and Canned Pineapple.
And then there was The House of Sublime, which returned with a flamboyant, inclusive and celebratory programme spanning award-winning cabaret and contemporary drag. This year’s edition put queer nightlife at full volume, with boundary-pushing shows from Fancy Shews Presents, The Cocoa Butter Club and Southbank Centre’s Kunsty Takeover.
But Wilderness has never been simply a music festival with some food and entertainment around the edges. Over the past fifteen years, it has built an identity around the idea that all of these things can exist together.
Food, in particular, has become one of the festival’s defining experiences, bringing together Michelin-starred heavyweights, internationally acclaimed chefs and some of the brightest new names in the culinary world.
The Wilderness 2026 Long Table Banquet opened with festival favourite broadcaster Andi Oliver, in partnership with The Circle. Hosted by Oliver alongside The Circle CEO Raakhi Shah and The Circle Ambassador Lucy Siegle, festival-goers enjoyed a vibrant Caribbean-inspired menu, with £5 from every seat donated directly to support grassroots women-led organisations worldwide.
Across the weekend, headline chefs included Atul Kochhar, Margot Henderson OBE and Mike Davies, while Audi ambassador Theo Randall led an exclusive dining experience at the Audi Haven.
The Chef’s Table brought together leading culinary innovators including Ash Valenzuela-Heeger, Sam Carter, Douglas McMaster and John Chantarasak, celebrating bold flavours, seasonal British produce and pioneering sustainable dining.
For those wanting to step away from the noise, Wilderness offered an equally extensive programme of ways to slow down.
The Lakeside Spa and Wandering Wild Sauna provided places to recharge, alongside Peloton workouts, sound healing, Wim Hof Method workshops, Reiki and Women’s Circle in the Wild. New to Wilderness this year were dedicated sauna and cold-plunge experiences, offering another way to reset between late nights and long days exploring the site.
Younger festival-goers had their own world to discover. The Family Field offered theatre, workshops, games, circus skills and interactive entertainment, while Tinkertown invited children to rediscover the art of den building using reclaimed timber.
And everywhere, the festival’s 2026 theme could be seen.
Bureau of Lost Things invited festival-goers to draw inspiration from lost objects, imaginary friends and forgotten childhood dreams, and the response was suitably imaginative. Across Cornbury Park, the festival site became a parade of striking costumes and playful interpretations of things lost, forgotten or perhaps never quite real.
It was a fitting theme for a festival whose greatest trick may be its ability to make people forget where they are.
For four days, Cornbury Park became a place of extraordinary contrasts: Carl Cox in the woods; Annie Lennox on the main stage; Caribbean food served around a long table; orchestral interpretations of audience requests; drag and cabaret; jazz, house and disco; cold plunges and late-night dancing; family dens and secret DJ sets.
As Wilderness bids farewell to its wild ones who danced, roamed, explored and sparkled across its fifteenth edition, the festival leaves behind the particular kind of weekend that is difficult to summarise in a single headline.
Perhaps that is the point.
Wilderness is less about one defining moment than the accumulation of them – the performance you came to see, the artist you discovered, the meal that lasted longer than expected, the dancefloor found by accident, the stranger at the table, the costume that made you stop and look, and the secret set you almost missed.
After fifteen editions, the formula remains remarkably simple: arrive at Cornbury Park, lose yourself for four days, and see what you find.
Wilderness will return to Cornbury Park from Thursday 05 to Sunday 08 August 2027.
Photography: JBPHOTO, Carolina Faruolo, Gobinder J Hitta, Matt Higgs and Sarah Louise Bennett.
What’s on in Oxford and across Oxfordshire this September
Hello and welcome to your invaluable guide to the best events, exhibitions and things to do in Oxford and across Oxfordshire throughout September.
September in Oxfordshire may be ‘back to school’ time, but it’s also when the county comes alive with a lot of the cultural scene that goes into semi-hibernation mode over the summer, returning to life in the autumn.
From comedy to concerts, funfairs to country fairs, there’s something in stock for everyone in Oxfordshire this September. And if you fancy venturing further afield, consider a cultural day trip to London’s west end for a weekend matinee in one of London’s theatres (the capital city is relatively calmer then).
And while it may officially be the end of summer, the British Autumn may yet surprise us with some spectacular sunny spells. If that be the case, make the best of it with brunch at one of Oxfordshire’s best restaurants with outdoor seating or afternoon tea in a country house that’s within easy reach.
Needless to say, this is a curated list of things to do in Oxford and across Oxfordshire this September. Take a look at the “What’s on” section, where you’ll find a growing array of events in Oxford and across Oxfordshire, plus unmissable ones beyond the county that would make for a great day out.
Got an event that should be on the list? List your event on The Oxford Magazine website and reach our growing audience of people who live, work or play in Oxfordshire. Once again, welcome to your invaluable guide to what’s on in Oxford and across Oxfordshire this September.
Blenheim Palace is delighted to be hosting a series of exclusive watercolour workshops led by acclaimed Woodstock artist Rod Craig.
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Welcome to The Choir of Man, the best pub in the world. Come ready to drink in the excitement. Brimming with hits from artists such as Queen, Luther Vandross, Sia, Paul Simon, Adele, Guns & Roses, Avicii and Katy Perry and many more.
Salon Privé returns to Blenheim Palace with their most sensational line-up to date. For four days, the South Lawn will be overcome with the finest super and classic cars in the world, accompanied by luxury brands and exquisite hospitality to form the UK’s Most Exclusive Motor Show.
The North Wall Arts Centre
BAFTA-winning writer and recovering spoken-word artist Jack Rooke brings back his debut comedy-theatre show ‘Good Grief’ featuring the original show, some present day musings and a decade retrospective of Jack Rook capitalising on his dead dad to varied levels of failure and success.
Ruby Wax and Clive Tulloh review clips from Ruby’s extraordinary shows, tell scandalous stories never before heard, and take the audience along for the ride.
On the banks of the Thames in South Oxfordshire, Wallingford BunkFest is a free-access community festival providing a unique, family-friendly celebration with something for everyone. From a small marquee in a pub car park to filling the KineCroft and providing entertainment throughout Wallingford, on the River Thames and the Bunk Railway line.
Festival lineup includes: The Delicate Sound of Pink Floyd / Dr Feelgood / The Blue Water Giants
The Archers: Live at 75 tours the UK with cast performances, music and nostalgic moments celebrating the iconic BBC show. Experience Ambridge as you’ve never seen – or heard – it before!
Michael Spicer, the online sensation who brought you the award-winning viral hit The Room Next Door, brings another hilarious and brilliantly entertaining satirical stage show – Hope All’s Well.
Jon Ronson brings his latest book to life on stage, exploring mystery, crime and human behaviour in a gripping live show. You’ll also get a first look at what’s coming in the next season of Things Fell Apart, and the chance to put your questions directly to Jon.
The Rare Plant Fair at Adwell House near Thame brings together specialist nurseries and plant enthusiasts in a historic Chilterns garden setting. Visitors can explore rare and unusual plants, enjoy food stalls, and experience the estate’s celebrated walled garden and water features.
St Giles’ Fair is one of the most prestigious and long-standing fairs in the country, dating back to 1625 as a parish festival celebrating the feast of St Giles – it is held on the Monday and Tuesday following the first Sunday after St Giles’ Day (01 September).
Over the centuries, it has evolved from a toy and children’s fair to a large-scale funfair, with rides and attractions expanding during the Victorian era. Today, the fair is run by Oxford City Council, drawing huge crowds for two days of traditional rides, games, and festivities each September.
Discover more: All the fun of the fairs
Holy Holy recreate the authentic sound of David Bowie with drummer Woody Woodmansey and producer Tony Visconti leading an all-star band through Bowie classics from the 1970s to Blackstar. Featuring Heaven 17’s Glenn Gregory on vocals, the acclaimed live show celebrates one of music’s most influential catalogues with stunning performances and musicianship.
Lucy Worsley shares stories from Britain’s royal past in an engaging live event exploring palaces, monarchs and history. Prepare to be entertained, enlightened, and thoroughly charmed.
The Sustainable Fashion Show returns to Blenheim Palace as part of Sustainable Fashion Week 2026. Showcasing innovative local and emerging designers, the runway features more than 70 sustainable looks created from rescued, upcycled and pre-loved materials in the stunning Orangery setting.
Cornbury House Horse Trials is a new original eventing experience that promises to be a stylish, fun, and innovative experience for competitors and spectators from all around the world. Enjoy locally sourced and sustainable food and drink, retail with luxurious local brands, plus access to the otherwise private Deer Park and the wider historic parkland.
Experience an extraordinary piano recital from Grammy Award-winning Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson as he explores the timeless musical connections between Bach, Beethoven and Schubert. Featuring expressive performances and the introduction of the Schwarzman Centre’s new Steinway D grand piano, this captivating programme celebrates beauty, lyricism and emotional depth.
Paul Merton and Suki Webster’s Improv Show is an evening of sensational improvised comedy featuring fast, fabulously funny improvised games, scenes, stories and laugh out loud surrealism.
Join A Night of Laughs for a fantastic evening of comedy in aid of the Oxfordshire charity, Lawrence Nurses. Don’t miss Miles Jupp, Adam Kay, Lucy Porter, Arthur Smith, and Ria Lina for a night of sharp wit and big laughs – all for an incredible cause.
The team behind OxPHWOARd brings Toxic MasculiniTEASE, boylesque at its best – a racy romp of bodacious boys and satirical striptease, starring performers of all shapes, sizes, and genders, pushing boundaries and showing there’s more than one way to be sexy and masc!
Jon Anderson performs YES classics live with The Band Geeks in a tour celebrating iconic progressive rock hits.
The Theatre Chipping Norton
Lucy Porter returns to Chippy with a brand new show about the power of letting yourself go – in every sense and using your midlife crisis to pursue new goals and reinvent yourself.
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Tom Bailey opens his 2026 UK tour with a Friars Aylesbury performance celebrating the biggest Thompson Twins hits, joined by special guests Blancmange for an evening of iconic Eighties synth-pop classics.
The UK’s No.1 outdoor cinema shows come to the beautiful Stonor Park & Gardens near Henley-on-Thames. Get ready for an experience like no other in this incredible setting.
Join Miriam in conversation for stories from the new book, naughty confessions, and a no-holds-barred Q&A where no question is off-limits. Expect memories & mammaries, Arsenal, politics, filth, and absolutely everything in between.
Oxford Open Doors is a weekend that celebrates Oxford’s heritage and culture by giving everyone the chance to explore the colleges, university buildings and green spaces together with a range of heritage sites across the city – many of which are not usually open to members of the public.
Read more: Oxford Open Doors: nine properties to see inside
Henley Farm & Country Show is a fun, family day visited by thousands every year and this year features the spectacular Bolddog Motorcycle Display Team, Shetland Pony Racing, Scurry Racing, Grand Parades of Animals, Heavy Horse Parade, Farm Machinery, Classic Cars and Vintage Tractors in the main ring.
Sam Campbell brings his surreal comedy show Kid Giblet live, blending absurd humour with sharp observational wit.
Witney Feast 2026 brings the community together for a lively celebration of local food, drink, entertainment and family-friendly fun in the heart of Witney.
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Lord of the Dance presents their 30th Anniversary, a combination of precision dance, powerful music, pyrotechnics, and emotional storytelling featuring over 150,000 taps per performance, with the dancers’ energy and passion promising an electrifying experience.
Transform Trauma Oxford 2026 by Masters Events presents Science, Spirit and the Body: The Synthesis of Healing, exploring how modern science, embodied practice and spiritual understanding come together to create a more integrated vision of healing. Join thousands of people from around the world who are advancing the future of trauma and mental health care.
Lineup of speakers includes: Gabor Maté / Bessel van der Kolk / Licia Sky / Tara Swart and many more.
Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities
MAN WOMAN, a visually striking dance performance by New York choreographer Vangeline that reimagines the world of Butoh for contemporary audiences. Inspired by Eikoh Hosoe’s iconic photographs, the production blends expressive movement, visionary costumes and an immersive electro-acoustic score to explore identity, transformation and female agency through a bold feminist lens.
The Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials is a must for any eventing enthusiast. It’s four days of eventing action, including Dressage, Cross Country and Showjumping, all taking place in the breathtaking grounds of one of Britain’s most beautiful and historic venues – Blenheim Palace, home of the Duke of Marlborough.
Get ready for three days of rides, thrills, treats and family fun as the annual Thame September Fair lands on the High Street. From dodgems and waltzers to hot dogs and candy floss, there’s something for everyone.
Learn to move with ease, fluidity and total control with internationally acclaimed choreographer, dancer and teacher Vangeline. Whether you’re a dancer, performer, or simply a complete beginner who is curious about movement and creativity, this workshop welcomes all.
Fin Taylor, the King of the Internet Jungle, is back with his Pre-emptive Comeback Special live, delivering sharp, fearless stand-up on his biggest tour yet.
The Knights of Royal England return to Stonor Park for an action-packed weekend of medieval jousting, thrilling full-contact tournaments and family entertainment. Enjoy archery, falconry, axe throwing, street food and adventures at Tumblestone Hollow in a spectacular historic setting.
Experience the electrifying reunion of Formula One’s most captivating driver partnership, as former team-mates, fierce rivals and companions David Coulthard and Mika Häkkinen are back on the road for a live evening of stories, insight and humour.
23 September to 11 October
Step aboard When the Blackbird Sings, an immersive promenade production that takes audiences on a remarkable journey through Oxford’s past and present. Following Paulette’s inspiring story from 1966, this powerful new production combines live performance, travel by bus and historic locations to explore identity, community, resilience and the people who have shaped the city’s history.
The Lemonheads head out on their 2026 tour, representing a significant new chapter for the band rooted in a commitment to their music and the community that surrounds it.
The award-winning Oxford Opera Company is back at The Playhouse with Puccini’s iconic Tosca. New Zealand-born Samoan soprano, Marlena Devoe returns following critically acclaimed performances as Mimi in La Bohème and Pamina in The Magic Flute. Be swept away by the majesty of Puccini’s music as Oxford Opera Orchestra brings this epic human story of love, lust, loyalty, corruption, jealousy, and revenge to life.
25 September to 11 October
Phase | Pattern | Pulse features three audio programmes of Steve Reich’s compositions: Music for 18 Musicians, Drumming and The Sextets, offering an exploded 360° insider’s view of some of Reich’s most admired compositions, revealing the inner structures of each piece in fresh and startling detail.
University Church of St Mary the Virgin
Experience an enchanting candlelit evening with the English Chamber Orchestra and acclaimed violinist Harriet Mackenzie, featuring Vivaldi’s exhilarating Winter from The Four Seasons, Vaughan Williams’ soaring The Lark Ascending and John Eccles’ beautiful Aire from The Mad Lover’s Suite.
The North Wall Arts Centre
Fresh from starring in the latest series of Taskmaster, Ania Magliano brings Peach Fuzz, a brand-new show full of jokes, confessions, and occasionally unhinged observations.
Explosive indie-rock favourites return to the stage with their signature blend of huge riffs, anthemic choruses and raw, high-energy performance. Expect powerful guitar-driven tracks, soaring vocals and the kind of urgency that has made them a standout force in modern British rock.
The Jeff Beck Experience is a celebration of the extraordinary sound, style and legacy of one of the most influential guitarists of all time, Jeff Beck. This is your opportunity to hear some of the most iconic instrumental rock work performed live, with a focus on authenticity, atmosphere and respect for a truly unique musical legacy.
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Al Murray brings his brand new stand up show – All You Need Is Guv, with hot-takes for the masses and offering a much-needed truth tonic. With a fresh and frothing pint to hand, a barrel of laughs to pour from, and a flower in his heart, Guv is all you need.
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Bringing his successful sellout and highly praised show on a UK tour, Astronomer and author Adrian West (aka VirtualAstro) presents a glorious visual and thought-provoking experience for everyone who looks up and wonders. Using amazing visual effects, The Night Sky Show will take you on a fantastic and epic journey across the cosmos from our celestial backyard.
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Get ready for a night of raw emotion, powerhouse vocals and thunderous guitars as Love Hurts – Rock Anthems and Power Ballads storms across the UK in 2026.
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Tom Davis is back on the road with his fully loaded show Spudgun, firing out his freshly cooked observations on life’s hot topics.
David Essex returns to the stage with his ‘Thanks for the Memories’ tour in September 2026, celebrating decades of music, theatre and performance in a must-see live show for fans old and new.
Comedy star Urzila Carlson heads to the UK in 2026 with her new show Fatty on a Yacht, blending deadpan humour and sharp observations on identity, belonging and life’s awkward moments.
Every Saturday (Except 26 December)
Out of the Deep is a family-friendly specimen handling and exploration of the underwater world of marine reptiles.
Oxford University Museum of Natural History
Join Family-Friendly Sundays for free sessions including nature-themed activities, creative crafts, family-friendly trails and more, all provided by the museum’s volunteers.
Step back into the golden age of the Great Western Railway at this 21-acre living museum, where trains from Victorian times to the 1960s bring railway history to life. Explore historic engine sheds, restored locomotives, interactive signalling displays and wartime exhibits, with the rare chance to see steam-era engineering up close in a quieter, immersive setting.
Meet the four-legged and feathered summer guests this summer as the Walled Garden comes alive with the sights, sounds and snuffles of the Marlborough Mini Farm.
Camp Tumblestone arrives at Tumblestone Hollow with a brand-new outdoor adventure included in every summer holiday ticket. Families can enjoy giant garden games, an agility trail, imaginative play in the teepee camp area and even more exciting activities alongside the popular adventure playground.
Developed through research into the Bate Collection of Musical Instruments at the University of Oxford, the exhibition brings together sound, video and photography to consider what is revealed and concealed through the collection, preservation and display of musical instruments. At its centre is a new sound work created using recordings of historic instruments from the collection.
Blenheim Palace presents Life Through a Royal Lens, a major photography exhibition tracing the Royals’ enduring relationship with the camera, from the reign of Queen Victoria to the present day.
The Bodleian Libraries’ Wonder of Birds exhibition explores art, science and culture through the lens of avian life. Featuring rare archives, manuscripts and immersive sound, it invites visitors to reflect on both the beauty of birds and their decline.
Join Pip & Posy’s Treehouse Trail in Adventure Play on an adventure to solve the mystery of the missing toy Piggy!
There are car shows, and then there are gatherings where the car becomes something closer to an artefact: a record of ambition, craftsmanship and the particular obsessions of the people who built it.
This year’s Concours by Aviva Private Clients at Blenheim Palace brings together machinery from across the history of the automobile, from pre-war racers and hand-built grand tourers to prototypes and modern hypercars. Some are celebrated names; others are rarities whose stories are almost as compelling as their engineering.
Set against the architecture and parkland of Blenheim Palace on 2 and 3 September, the event offers a chance to see cars that rarely share the same piece of ground. Here are some of the entries worth seeking out.
What makes a concours compelling is not simply rarity. It is the opportunity to see, gathered in one place, the different ideas that have shaped the automobile: speed and elegance, experimentation and excess, engineering discipline and sheer imagination.
At Blenheim Palace, those ideas span almost a century, from the craftsmanship of pre-war luxury cars to the uncompromising technology of today’s hypercars. Together, they offer something more interesting than a parade of valuable machinery. They tell the story of what happens when designers, engineers and manufacturers decide that a car can be more than a means of getting from one place to another.
For anyone with even a passing interest in cars, it should make for quite a spectacle.
Armstrong-Siddeley Special Six
Class: The Golden Age of Motoring
Built during one of Britain’s great periods of automotive innovation, this elegant 1933 Armstrong-Siddeley Special Six captures the craftsmanship and engineering excellence that defined luxury motoring before the Second World War.
Maserati 8C 3000
Class: Sports Racers
One of the rarest Maseratis ever built, the 8C 3000 represented the marque’s ambition to dominate international motorsport. Combining formidable performance with unmistakable Italian styling, it remains one of the most coveted pre-war sports cars in existence.
Arnolt Bristol Deluxe
Class: Celebrating 80 Years of Bristol Motoring
Marking eight decades of Bristol, this beautifully proportioned Arnolt Bristol Deluxe is one of the Anglo-American collaboration’s most distinctive creations, combining British engineering with elegant Italian coachwork.
Alfa Romeo Sprint Berlinetta
Class: Celebrating 100 Years of Touring Design
Created by legendary coachbuilder Touring, this Alfa Romeo Sprint Berlinetta celebrates a century of one of Italy’s most influential design houses. Its lightweight construction and timeless styling helped shape sports-car design for generations.
Maserati 3500GT Spyder Prototipo by Vignale
Class: La Dolce Vita – Italian Glamour of the ’50s & ’60s
A one-off prototype, the Maserati 3500GT Spyder Prototipo embodies the glamour and sophistication of post-war Italy. Penned by Vignale, it represents the golden age of open-top grand touring and remains one of Maserati’s most striking creations.
Porsche 901
Class: Early Air-cooled Porsche Icons
Before it became the legendary 911, it was the Porsche 901. Produced before Porsche changed the name following a trademark dispute with Peugeot, surviving examples are exceptionally rare and hugely significant in the marque’s history.
Ferrari 166MM by Touring
Class: Sports Racers
One of Ferrari’s earliest competition cars, the 166MM helped establish the marque on the world stage, with victories in endurance racing including the Mille Miglia and Le Mans. Today, it remains one of the most historically significant Ferraris ever built.
Lamborghini Miura P400S
Class: 60 Years of the Lamborghini Miura
Widely regarded as the world’s first true supercar, the Miura changed automotive history with its mid-engined layout and dramatic Marcello Gandini styling. Sixty years after its debut, the P400S remains one of the most influential and captivating cars ever produced.
Ferrari 328 GTS
Class: Never Mind the Weather – Cabriolets & Convertibles
One of Ferrari’s most recognisable and usable classics, the 328 GTS captures the spirit of open-top motoring in the late 1980s. With its removable targa roof and timeless Pininfarina design, it remains a firm favourite among collectors.
Ferrari 250 GT Series 1 Cabriolet
Class: Passione Ferrari
Elegant, rare and effortlessly desirable, the Ferrari 250 GT Series 1 Cabriolet is regarded as one of Maranello’s finest grand tourers. Combining V12 performance with beautiful coachwork, it represents Ferrari at its most refined.
Bugatti EB110 Prototype
Class: Supercar Icons
A pioneering supercar ahead of its time, the Bugatti EB110 showcased advanced engineering, including four-wheel drive and a quad-turbocharged V12. As a prototype, this example offers a fascinating glimpse into Bugatti’s ambitious revival during the 1990s.
Aston Martin Valiant Prototype
Class: Limited Production Supercars
One of Aston Martin’s most extreme road cars, the Valiant was developed with an emphasis on driver engagement. This prototype offers a rare opportunity to see the engineering behind one of the world’s most exclusive modern supercars.
Bugatti Bolide
Class: Hypercar Heaven (2006–2026)
Designed with virtually no compromises, the Bugatti Bolide pushes automotive engineering to extraordinary limits. Built around uncompromising, track-focused performance, it represents the extreme end of modern hypercar design and is among the most anticipated cars at this year’s Concours.
For five days in September, Blenheim Palace will become a particularly improbable backdrop for the future of the automobile. The lawns and formal gardens of one of England’s grandest country houses will host machines designed not for the school run, the commute or even particularly sensible journeys, but for speed, rarity and spectacle.
Salon Privé 2026 returns to Oxfordshire next week with what organisers describe as the largest collection of supercar and hypercar debuts in the event’s 21-year history. Among them will be cars being shown in Britain for the first time. And it is a line-up that says something about the peculiar state of the modern collector car.
The internal-combustion engine may be facing its most profound transformation in generations, but at the top end of the market there remains an extraordinary appetite for cars that are faster, rarer and more elaborate than anything that came before.
Lamborghini’s latest V12 arrives in Oxfordshire
Taking centre stage in the Automotive Gallery will be the Lamborghini Revuelto SV, making its UK debut at Blenheim Palace shortly after its global unveiling at The Quail in California.
The SV name carries considerable weight at Lamborghini. Meaning Super Veloce, or “Super Fast”, it can be traced back to the Miura SV of 1971 and has subsequently appeared on some of the marque’s most extreme V12s, including the Diablo SV, Murciélago LP 670-4 Super Veloce and Aventador SV.
The Revuelto SV continues that lineage — with numbers that would have seemed absurd even by Lamborghini’s standards a generation ago. Its V12 hybrid powertrain produces 1,065 CV and 1,425 Nm of system torque, sending the car from 0 to 100 km/h in 2.4 seconds and to 200 km/h in 6.7 seconds. Top speed is in excess of 345 km/h.
Lamborghini describes it as the most powerful and fastest production car it has ever built at Sant’Agata Bolognese. Only 1,963 examples will be produced, a reference to the year Automobili Lamborghini was founded, with the car reserved for the marque’s most loyal customers and collectors.
For Salon Privé visitors, though, the attraction is rather simpler: this will be the first opportunity to see the Revuelto SV in the UK. It will be joined at Blenheim by Lamborghini’s Urus SE Performante, making its own debut at the palace.
BRABUS brings two very different monsters
If Lamborghini’s approach is to push its established V12 formula further, BRABUS has opted for something more eccentric. The German coachbuilder will unveil the BRABUS BODO, a 2+2 Gran Turismo standing just 130 centimetres tall and limited to 77 examples.
The car is named in tribute to BRABUS founder Bodo Buschmann and draws on the proportions and character of the grand coupes of the automobile’s so-called golden age.
Under its carbon-fibre body is a hand-built 5.2-litre V12 biturbo engine. The result is a 0-to-100 km/h time of three seconds and a claimed top speed of 223 mph. It is an unapologetically old-fashioned idea executed with modern engineering: a large engine, a low roof and very little interest in restraint.
BRABUS will also use Salon Privé for the UK debut of the 800 Cabrio, based on the latest Mercedes-AMG G 63.
The transformation from familiar boxy off-roader to open-top luxury machine required more than 500 newly developed components, including a complex soft-top system. There is an 800hp 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 beneath the bonnet, while production is limited to 50 cars worldwide.
The two BRABUS cars could hardly be more different in appearance, but they share the same philosophy: if something can be made more extravagant, it probably should be.
Meet Giamaro’s Krafla
Among the more intriguing names making its UK debut at Blenheim will be Giamaro Automobili, an emerging Italian marque presenting the Krafla in its GC livery.
The company describes the car as an expression of extreme engineering, Italian craftsmanship and driver-focused design.
The GC specification combines Azzurro Giamaro, Bianco Infinito and Grigio Cenere with exposed carbon-fibre elements, giving the car a finish intended to emphasise its aerodynamic forms.
Inside, the emphasis shifts from visual drama to the driver. The cockpit has been designed around ergonomics, materials and technology, with Giamaro presenting the Krafla as a hypercar in which the person behind the wheel remains central to the experience.
For a relatively new manufacturer, Salon Privé offers an audience that few other events could provide: collectors, enthusiasts and buyers accustomed to seeing the newest and rarest cars before they reach the wider public.
The headline cars are only part of the story.
Electrogenic and Theon Design will also stage debuts and unveilings, while Petroyle and Talos will make their first large public displays.
The Automotive Gallery will additionally feature Bristol Motors, Delage Automobiles, Koenigsegg and Elektron Motors.
The resulting collection reflects a changing automotive landscape.
The traditional supercar manufacturer now shares the stage with electric specialists, restomod companies, independent coachbuilders and start-up hypercar marques.
Some are preserving old ideas; others are attempting to reinvent them. All are competing for the attention of a clientele increasingly interested in rarity and individuality as much as outright performance.
Salon Privé has become a particularly effective stage for that competition because the cars are not presented in isolation.
They are displayed in the gardens of Blenheim Palace, among concours cars, fashion, hospitality and the rituals of a traditional English social occasion.
Five days of automotive theatre
The spectacle returns to Blenheim
Salon Privé runs from 02 to 06 September, beginning with the Salon Privé Concours by Aviva Private Clients and continuing through Ladies’ Day by Boodles, Supercar Saturday and Club Trophy Day presented by Lockton, before concluding with Supercar Sunday and Lifestyle Club Day.
But the cars are the reason to pay attention this year.
Salon Privé’s 20th anniversary in 2025 set a high bar for an event already accustomed to excess. This year’s answer is not subtle: more debuts, more hypercars and a collection of machines that exist at the outer limits of what a road-going automobile can be.
For Oxfordshire, it means that one of the county’s most familiar landmarks is about to become an unlikely meeting point for some of the most exclusive cars in the world.
The Revuelto SV will arrive carrying more than 1,000 horsepower. BRABUS will bring a V12 coupe and an open-air G-Class. Giamaro will introduce a new Italian hypercar.
And for a few days, the roads around Blenheim will lead not merely to a palace, but to another kind of fantasy — one measured in horsepower, carbon fibre and the increasingly rare sound of a V12.
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