There was a good turnout for the traditional Boxing Day gathering of MGs on Abingdon Market Place this morning.

Richard and Gill Martin were there to help organise the gathering on behalf of the Abingdon Works Centre MG Car club.

It was a chance to polish the MG and give it a runout, on what was a dry day,

and meet up socially with other club members for coffee from the various cafes that were open, and exchange MG news.

Those who arrived early could also get the best bargains at the fashion chain Fat Face, whose Boxing Day sale opened at 9 am.  Fat Face have news too. They were taken over by Next in October 2023.

Abingdon was the manufacturing home of MG for many years, from the 1920s until 1980. Today, the Oxfordshire MG Owners Club and the MG Car Club Abingdon Works Centre worked together to host a celebration of the marque’s 100th anniversary. The event, which took place at Abingdon Vale Cricket Ground, attracted around 250 MG cars from all over the UK.

The event was initiated by local MG enthusiast Tony Cotter, who felt that many large MG100 events were taking place elsewhere but not in Abingdon, the spiritual home of MG. Tony and wife, Richard Martin and his wife Gill worked very hard with many others to make the event possible.

The event was a great success, with a wide variety of MG cars on display, from classic models to modern classics. Special plaques were on display on many.

There were also stalls selling MG merchandise, as well as some very well-known Abingdon traders, such as Busby Bees and Devine Times Photography.

The rain did come at around 1 pm, but this didn’t dampen the spirits of the enthusiasts who remained. The Mayor of Abingdon was on hand to talk to owners and present cups to the winners of various competitions, including the car that most other car owners would have liked to own. That turned out to be the MGA above.

Money raised through entrance fees for cars etc. went to two charities, the Abingdon Foodbank and the Thames Valley Air Ambulance. (To find about more about the Foodbank visit https://abingdon.foodbank.org.uk.)

The announcer at the end of the event said, “We’ll see you all again in another 100 years.”

Thanks to Pete for this piece:

A few weeks ago, I had a knock on my door from a neighbour whose uncle was visiting from Australia. He asked if I would let him look at my MGs.

His name is John Prime, and he had a fascinating story to tell.

I left Abingdon for Australia as a “Ten Pound Pom” with my family in 1975 aged 34 years.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time there & as an original “£10 Pom” anything to do with MG’s & Abingdon will always hold a special place in my heart.

As a complete surprise for John I took him out for a spin in my MG RV8 convertible (built at Cowley in the 1990’s) & I arranged to take him down to the MG Car Club in Cemetery Road to meet Colin Grant & archivist Pete Neal who showed him around Kimber House. My thanks to Colin & Pete.

The photo of John is with my modified MGB GT (known as an RV8 GT) I think the transformation surprised him when he recalled his days of working on the MGB, he could not believe it when he saw the car battery located under the bonnet.

The photo shows John Prime with Pete’s modified MGB GT (known as an RV8 GT).

A variety of original MG V8s, built in Abingdon, and more modern MG RV8s, built at Cowley were displayed on Abingdon Market Place today to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the car’s launch.

The MG V8 was produced by MG from 1973 to 1976 and was based on the MGB, but strengthened to hold the larger V8 engine. Only 2,591 MG V8s were produced, making it a rare and collectable car.

For more information see https://www.v8register.net/