Motoring fans flock to Goodwood to make the most of the Moving Motor Show

THOUSANDS of motoring fans from across the world made their way to soak up the atmosphere at Goodwood's Moving Motor Show today.

In an exclusive interview with the Observer, Lord March hailed the eagerly-anticipated build up day to the Festival of Speed as a success that has set the tone for a glorious weekend.

“It’s been an exciting day here - we are now the main British Motor Show which has been shown by all the manufacturers who are here today. There are a lot of special things going over the next few days, including with Lotus. I’ll be driving in a John Player Lotus myself which I’m looking forward to over the weekend.

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“Also very special for us is having the Queen’s cars on display at the Style et Luxe enclosure and we’ll be having something of a Jubilee celebration with some large flags we’ll be unfurling from the house.”

Among the many highlights of today’s show were major debut outings for a wide range of cars, with a total of around 20 new models on display.

These ranged from the striking Lotus Exige roadster which attracted plenty of attention on its stand, through to BMW’s impressive new M6, plus a strong presence from Rolls-Royce, which offered visitors the chance to test drive its Phantom coupe and Ghost models.

Tommaso Volpe, of Lotus added that there had been a strong response to its return to the event, which is now in its third year. He said the company was especially proud of the centrepiece sculpture consisting of race-winning Lotus Formula One cars on the front lawn of Goodwood. “It’s going to be a very special weekend for us indeed,” he said of the event.

For a full report see next week’s Observer.