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Edenbridge & Oxted
Show - Monday, 26th August, 2024
- Report by: Chas Moody
The origin of the E&O
Show goes back to 1837 when the East Surrey Society held one of the first
agricultural shows to encourage innovation and education in farming. Since
then it has been run by different organisations at various venues and has
now evolved some 180 years later into the huge two day Edenbridge and
Oxted Agricultural Show on their 130-acre site at Ardenrun, Lingfield, the
first show being held there in 1988.
The Historic Vehicle
Section of the Show is a popular attraction these days but it was about to
be discontinued in late 1980s as attendance had dwindled to a handful of
vehicles. Current SVVS President Bozi was asked by the E&O Show
Chairman if he was interested in reviving the section and he became Chief
Steward, a position for which he was ideally placed as he was SVVS Vehicle
Registrar at the time and successfully ran the section for some fifteen
years with an 'invitation only' display of around 40 classic vehicles on
the Sunday and 40 Vintage on the Monday. - with the help of volunteers and
second-in-command SVVS Treasurer Tony Oakes who is still actively involved
with its running to this day!
This year the clerk of
the weather provided two fine days which attracted an interesting variety
of 48 cars on the Sunday and 49 cars and one motorcycle on Monday, mostly
pre-Millenium, although I did spot a late Nissan GT-R which attracted much
attention among the younger visitors!
Whilst the show is now
highly commercialised it is still very much an agricultural and farming
show at heart and a hugely entertaining event to attend.
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