Advertisement

Flywheel preview - a celebration of cars, bikes and aviation

Superb competition cars will be put through their paces
Superb competition cars will be put through their paces

The annual Flywheel festival at Bicester Heritage - the evocative former Cold War airbase that’s much as it was when the RAF mothballed it - is celebrating, among other things, 100 years since the Royal Flying Corps took up residency at the site.

Flywheel, which takes place this weekend, is billed as the UK’s most impressive gathering of historic cars, aircraft and military machinery in action. And that neatly encapsulates the event, which includes displays of classic road and racing cars on a track based on the former perimeter road, historic aircraft in the air and on the ground plus military vehicle displays and re-enactments.

Away from the live action, there are also hundreds of classic cars and bikes on static display.

Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage
Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage

For 2017, Flywheel will present an expanded programme of more than 100 historic competition cars from Edwardian chain-driven monsters, vintage Bentleys and Fifties Le Mans Jaguars.

Noteworthy examples include a 1934 Frazer Nash that still competes on its original engine, Triumph TR3 and 3A rally cars of the type that featured in the early careers of Jim Clark and Paddy Hopkirk, as well as a rare 1953 Allard J2X Le Mans, one of only 11 built with an aerodynamic body.

Alongside the road, sports and single-seater racing cars, there will also be a large collection of significant motorcycles on the track and in the open paddock.

Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage
Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage

The skies above Bicester Heritage will be the backdrop to a MkIX Spitfire performing a Battle of Britain-style dogfight with a Spanish-built version of the Messerschmitt 109. Both aircraft will also be on static display.

Bicester Heritage’s authentic military background makes it a popular venue for combat vehicle enthusiasts and re-enactors. Sherman and Scorpion tanks will be put through their paces in a live action arena, while the Bicester Home Guard will be making regular patrols.

Gliders also feature large in the site’s history, as it was used in the build-up to the airborne assault in the early hours of D-Day. Chalk Living History will be re-enacting life in a Glider Pilot Regiment, while the Vickers MG Collection & Research Association will be portraying a Second World War air landing unit.

The 100 years of powered flight at the venue will be celebrated by the Great War Display Team, which recreates the aerial battles over the trenches of the Western Front.

Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage
Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage

The Tiger 9 Aeronautical Display Team will also be in action, along with helicopter displays from the Historic Aircraft Flight Trust.

New for 2017 is a competitive element to the displays of historic cars, with the Footman James Cup for the best car in the paddock. A shortlist of 10 exceptional cars has been selected, including a 1904 Stanley steam car, a 1957 Maserati 250S and even a Speedwell-tuned Austin A30.

You can vote for your favourite from next Friday (June 2) at the footmanjames.co.uk website. The winner will be announced on the final day of Flywheel.

No historic event these days is complete without a classic car auction. Brightwells, the official Bicester Heritage auction partner, will be selling a selection of cars on the Saturday, with interesting lots including a 1985 Maserati Ghibli, a 1973 Rover P6 and a superb late-model Renault 4 from 1980.

Other attractions include the Demon Drome Wall of Death motorcycle stunt show, which has an original 1920s vertical wooden wall that was sympathetically restored in 2006.

There will also be the chance to ride in one of the aforementioned tanks - a sure-fire attraction for children from eight to 80 - as well as passenger rides over the event in a 1930s de Havilland Tiger Moth biplane.

Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage
Flywheel Festival - Bicester Heritage

Suitably retro family entertainment will include a vintage steam fair, restored 1970s dodgems running on an original 1933 track and pedal-powered planes.

As if that weren’t enough, there is also a bill of top-notch, retro-themed musical acts.

Even better, visitors are free to take a break from the action and wander the vast Bicester Heritage site, which is being formed into a hub for classic car and aviation specialists. All of the period buildings are being restored, making a tour a real step back in time.

And that authentic setting is what makes any event at Bicester Heritage so memorable.

For tips and advice, visit our Advice section, or sign up to our newsletter here

A-Z Car Finder

More classic car stories

Jaguar E-type Reborn: factory restored E-types from £285,000

Jaguar E-type Reborn
Jaguar E-type Reborn

Jaguar XJ220: 'forgotten' supercar celebrated

Jaguar XJ220
Jaguar XJ220

Festival of the Unexceptional: a celebration of everyday cars 1966-1989

Austin maestro
Austin maestro

Time capsule Range Rover from the Seventies: yours for £135,000

Range Rover Reborn
Range Rover Reborn

Inside the world's largest classic car restoration facility

BMT Philippines - world's largest classic car restorer
BMT Philippines - world's largest classic car restorer

What's it like to race a multi-million pound Ferrari at Goodwood?  

Lavant Cup 2015
Lavant Cup 2015

Steve McQueen versus Paul Newman: who was the better racer?

Paul Newman (left) and Steve McQueen during filming of The Towering Inferno - Credit: REX/Shutterstock
Credit: REX/Shutterstock