A new chapter for the BVAC
It’s been a busy year behind the scenes at the club. We now trade as Borders Vintage and Classic, a name that better reflects the range of vehicles and members we have today. The Borders Vintage Automobile Club, founded in 1972, remains the club at the heart of it all.
The committee is led by Chairman Keith Watson and Vice Chairman Rob Jenner, with Kenny Wilson as Club Secretary and Norman Burr as Treasurer. Our President is Capt. Gerald Maitland-Carew CVO. You can meet the full team on our new Committee page.
The headline for next year is the BVAC Classic Festival of Motoring on Sunday 6 June 2027 at Thirlestane Castle, Lauder. Planning is well under way, and there’s lots more to come over the next few months.
A brand new website
The new bvac.org.uk website went live this week. It has been rebuilt from the ground up by Chris at Black Sheep Digital, who has looked after the club’s website since 2021. The aim was simple: make it easier for members, visitors, exhibitors and clubs to get involved, and take a lot of the paperwork off our volunteers. Here’s what’s new.
Two sites in one. The club and the Festival now each have their own home, look and menu. The Club side covers membership, club runs and social events, news, the newsletter archive, our history and the gallery. The BVAC Classic side has everything for Festival-goers: what’s on, tickets, getting there, FAQs and highlight films from past shows.
Festival tickets online, on sale today. You can buy 2027 BVAC Classic tickets online now. Super early bird tickets are £12 until 14 February 2027, then £15 until the week of the show, and £20 on the gate. Under-16s go free with an adult. Your e-tickets arrive by email as a PDF with a QR code, ready to show on your phone at the gate. Buy tickets.
Show car entries online. From Friday 20 November you can enter your vehicle for display at the Festival online and pay by card in the same step. Each BVAC member gets one free entry, with further vehicles at the standard rate. The form checks your membership number as you go.
Club stands, now digital. Car clubs bringing a display to Thirlestane can register through the new Club Portal, also opening on 20 November. Once approved, club organisers can log in to add, change or remove their members and vehicles right up to two weeks before the show. No more chasing spreadsheets and emails.
Trade, volunteers and sponsors. Trade stand applications open on Wednesday 25 November. The volunteer and sponsorship forms are open now. If you’d like to help on the day, or put your business in front of thousands of motoring enthusiasts, we’d love to hear from you.
Membership, coming online. From January 2027 you’ll be able to join or renew online and pay by card. Your membership number will be issued automatically and you’ll get a confirmation email straight away. We’ll share more in the newsletter before it opens.
Stay in the loop. Sign up for Festival news using the box at the foot of any page. We’ll only email you about the BVAC and the Classic, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Built for your phone. The site has been designed to work just as well on a phone or tablet as on a computer, and we’ve published an accessibility statement setting out how we’re making it usable for everyone.
Club regalia. BVAC clothing can now be ordered through our regalia partner, FP Uniformz. Visit the Club Shop page for details.
Tell us what you think
A new website is never truly finished. If you spot something that isn’t right, or there’s something you’d like to see, please email info@bvac.org.uk.
A big thank you to everyone who has given their time, photos and feedback to get the site to this point. We hope you enjoy exploring it, and we look forward to seeing you at Thirlestane next June.
