There Was a Festival of the Unexceptional and a 1989 Proton Won the Fishy Crown

Instead, the car show held in the United Kingdom focuses on popularizing classic cars produced between the 1960s and 1990s that were considered less than ordinary when first introduced... but have since turned into quite rare appearances. And, of course, one can imagine that no Rolls-Royces, Ferraris, or Shelbys are featured here.

Instead, the 2021 edition was all about Protons, Nissans, Peugeots, Volkswagens, Triumphs, or Fiats. Just to name a few. In case you want the big picture, we’ve embedded below a couple of videos from UK-based vloggers that attended the festival and reported at large. As far as the organizers (Hagerty Insurance Agency, LLC) are concerned, they were quite happy their endeavor is becoming ever more popular, with a “record number of visitors” in attendance.

And that made a great venue for the immaculate true survivors present on the lawns of Grimsthorpe Castle this past weekend (Saturday, July 31st). Chief among them was a 1989 Proton 1.6 GL Black Knight that might be unknown to many car fans, save for the (few) diehard aficionados of the Malaysian automaker.

It won the accolade of becoming the grand winner of the 2021 Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional, followed by a 1991 Peugeot 106XN Graduate that allegedly cost a mere £500 (less than $700 at the current exchange rates). Naturally, these were not the only highlights.

Special mentions were awarded to a 1989 Nissan Bluebird, a 1986 Volkswagen Polo C Formel E, as well as a 1977 Fiat 128. Among the “thousands, more unexceptional cars (that) were displayed with pride,” the Best Dressed accolade went to a very colorful 1979 Ford Escort, whereas the Best Picnic award was given to a 1986 Volvo 340DL “with a spread of period-correct fare.”