Harrogate 2025 ??

[Kevin HunterParticipant @kevinhunter33456]

Despite murmurs of a date change, this never did happen in 2024, sadly.  And I’ve not seen anything about it for ‘25 yet.   Nothing on the Yorkshire Event Centre website nor Donny racecourse.

Are we to assume that the “National” MEE in Harrogate or, as it was for a while, Doncaster, is now dead and gone forever?

R.I.P.

 

 

[PlasmaParticipant @plasma]

It would be good to know if there are plans for any show in the north.

I went to the Leamington spa show last year and it seemed well attended.

Surely there is appetite for a show up here?

 

[BazParticipant @baz89810]

With all this merging of ME and MEW into a hybrid magazine will Morton’s still be interested in a Model Engineering Exhibition and what will happen to all the cups, trophies etc that used to be awarded. Maybe they should be donated to whoever now organises the Midlands exhibition in October, that way they will still be competed for.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

I recall it was a long time before the 2023 one appeared on the YEC web-site calendar, then last year the YEC managers totally ignored it when they created the same site’s album of the previous year’s shows. By telephone call directly to the YEC, I learnt the late publicity was due to late confirmation from the exhibition organiser.

So I take it no-one wanted to organise another, and that the YEC does not want it anyway.

The calendar and album suggest the YEC is now only interested in trade-shows anyway, both open to the public and those exclusive to commercial delegates.

>>>

Doncaster Racecourse hosted it only twice, I think, while the owners of the Great Yorkshire Showground were refurbishing theirs and denigrating it to a mere “event centre”. Could be worse… could be a “hub”.

…..

I did attend the second Doncaster show and enjoyed it once there, but vowed never to risk driving through that city again. (The racecourse is a nightmare to reach from the M1.) It also had the highest-price, lowest-value snack-bar I’ve encountered even in London exhibition-halls or motorway services, but anything equine-related means £££ by the muck-shovel full.

On the other hand I enjoyed the 2023 Harrogate exhibition, which is easy to reach even from the West, through the city.

….

About three years ago there was a rumour of talk of holding an exhibition in the South-West, but I think it was only talk – or only rumour of talk.

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi Nigel Graham 2, the ME exhibition was held a Doncaster four times, first one was in 2016 and the last one in 2019, it was planned to be there in 2020, but Covid stopped it from going ahead, however, the International Model Show – North, was held there in July 1997.

Regards Nick.

[Les RileyParticipant @lesriley75593]

The Midland show 2025 is being planned.

Us outside steamers have been booked in now.

[Keith Rogers 2Participant @keithrogers2]

Hi Les, is that the Harrogate show or the Warwick one?

Any hint of a date yet ? (Please).

Regards Keith.

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi Keith, the Midlands one is I Warwickshire.

Midlands Exhibition

Regards Nick.

[Keith Rogers 2Participant @keithrogers2]

Thanks Nick,

Keith.

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

When I first got interested in Model Engineering it was really thriving, but there was only one show, held in Central London, so it was easy to get to. At one time there were at least 3 and perhaps 4 shows per year, perhaps this was overdoing it. I certainly wouldn’t go to more than one in a year. Is there any mileage in having a single peripatetic show. Midlands is OK for me, but I realise southerners get nervous north of the M25, and it is a long way from Cornwall (everywhere is)

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

Regarding distance, it doesn’t matter where it’s held. It will still be a long way for many visitors, though ease of access will vary widely. At least Warwickshire is about as central as you can get and if travelling by car, easy to reach. Form South Dorset it’s about 4-5 hours each way; but I would think double that from the far West of Cornwall, or Glasgow.

I did attend the road steam-vehicle event at Bressingham in 2023 – though that represents only one facet of model-engineering. I made a long weekend of it, camping a few miles away. I am contemplating Lowmex but that may be even further for me so I’m not likely to make a habit of it. Though I have twice driven nearly to Kings Lynn and back in a day to buy things advertised on this site’s For Sale page.

The idea of a peripatetic show is appealing but it needs considerable organising, not least finding venues that don’t mind very heavy exhibits and trade stands.

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

I think that future exhibitions will mostly held in areas of the country that do not persecute the motorist traveller, which makes Leamington and Lowmex so much more attractive IMHO as a visitor and exhibitor

[Les RileyParticipant @lesriley75593]

I think one of the main reasons the Midland show remains is that they own their own premises.

I expect the biggest cost for the other exhibitions would have been rent.

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

That was the killer for the Spalding Show

[Chris CrewParticipant @chriscrew66644]

I do so hope the Midlands show goes ahead again this year. It has been a pleasure to visit and to stay over in Leamington, a beautiful English provincial town, for a couple of nights.

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

The original Model Engineering Show (Wembley, Olympia, Sandown Park, Ascot and finally Brooklands) was peripatetic both in location and time of year and it successfully managed to shake off all its regular visitors. Events need to be careful of changing too often. A regular Event tends to grow visitor numbers.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

I think the era of exhibitions within the M25 Corral is over, killed by the considerable expense not just in hall fees (I don’t know if Alex. Palace was overly expensive by venue standards) but by the congestion / emission charges, accommodation, etc. Not so much for visitors of whom many can share cars or use public-transport – though that is expensive – but for exhibitors and particularly the traders.

The last group has been declining conspicuously over the last few years, especially the larger ones. The smaller businesses appear, thankfully, still able to attend.

 

Midlands 2025…

YES! It’s on the “Warwickshire Event Centre” web-site… among others including two for model railways (inc. garden-gauge scales relevant to many model-engineers now), trade shows for memorial masons and portable-khasi companies. Oh, and the British Tarantula Society’s exhibition. No puns about web-sites on this thread, please.

[Martin Kyte]

On Martin Kyte Said:

The original Model Engineering Show (Wembley, Olympia, Sandown Park, Ascot and finally Brooklands) was peripatetic both in location and time of year and it successfully managed to shake off all its regular visitors. Events need to be careful of changing too often. A regular Event tends to grow visitor numbers.

That’s just moving around the home counties, another phrase which gets right up my nose. It’s only the ‘home’ counties if you live in London. Very difficult to get to if you live in ‘the provinces’ (another supercilious expression). I was thinking about going countrywide, but I can see that if the organiser of the Midlands show owns the venue that’s not going to happen. Leamington Spa is a reasonable compromise

[Kevin HunterParticipant @kevinhunter33456]

I’ve been attending both Warwick and the Harrogate/Doncaster shows, each year since 2012.  I found their position in the calendar, May and October, almost perfect as it splits the year nicely.  Even the last Harrogate show, March 2023, was a good date for me, although the snow made it interesting getting there.

These shows also gave easy access for a vast section of the population.  Those in the south could get to Warwick, those in Yorkshire, Lancashire and further north could access Harrogate (and Donny).   Model engineers in the midlands were spoilt for choice of course but that’s not important….the two shows catered for most of the country.

The decline in trade exhibitors is a problem but I recognise how the costs of attending with a lorry load of lathes etc, for example, might outweigh the benefits.  I for one prefer to see most things in the flesh and get hands on, especially expensive purchases rather than buy online.  I bought both my lathe and my mill after visiting shows, speaking to the sales team and seeing first hand the differences between models etc.   I think there’s no substitute for that.    As it is these days, so many companies are opting out and the shows sometimes feel like glorified car boot sales!

I travel up from Guernsey.  The shows were an excuse for a few days away on my own, doing something I’m into and “the boss” isn’t.  It was also an opportunity to blow the cobwebs out of my car engine at more than our max of 35mph!  I could fly and hire, but bringing my own car brought the added benefit of being able to buy heavy items which couldn’t get on a plane.  So I will keep going to Warwick, but can we PLEASE have the Yorkshire show back?  I need two breaks a year.

 

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi, the first ME exhibition I went to was in 1993, and the advert said it was a new venue in Olympia, I believe it was in Ally Pally for at least two or three years before that. It continued to be in Olympia for the next six years, and in 1999 it was in Ally Pally, then in 2000/1 it was held at Sandown for six years, then in 2006 it was in Olympia 2. 2007 was their Centenary year, and it was held in Ascot in September, and it was also at Ascot in September in 2008. In December 2009 it returned to Sandown for the next five years, but there wasn’t an exhibition in 2015, and it was held at Brooklands in September 20016. It was around this time they decided to hold it bi-annually, but the next exhibition was with the National ME in Doncaster in 2019, and of course Covid 19 hit most of the world, and there hasn’t been an ME exhibition since. The only two exhibitions that I went to in Wembley, were the London ones, held by Maridian Exhibitions, and were during the time when Wembley stadium was demolish and rebuilt, and this was after the London one had been held at Lee Valley for a few years, but in more recent years, the London one was held in Ally Pally, until Covid killed that one off too.

Regards Nick.

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

Weren’t the Lee Valley exhibitions organised by a group of london ME clubs and then taken over by Meridiene and then held at Ally Pally?

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi Bernard, quite possibly.

Regards Nick.

[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Hi Bernard, I’ve had a look through my MMEE souvenirs, and the first London one was called The London Model Engineer Gathering, which was at Lee Valley in Jan 97.

The second one was called The London Model Engineering & Modelling Exhibition, which was also at Lee Valley, and had Maridienne Exhibitions Ltd. name on it. It then went to Wembley in 2003 & 2004, before ending up in Ally Pally in 2005 for the rest of its time.

Regards Nick.

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