Bentley Le Mans Centenary celebrations

This year’s Donington Historic Festival will celebrate the 100th anniversary of Bentley’s first win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with track and static displays of significant historic racing machines from the iconic marque – including 2003 Speed 8 chassis 004/1 and 2000 EXP Speed 8 Le Mans GT prototype chassis 002/1.

In addition to the presence of two important representatives of the most famous race car of the modern Bentley era, the 2024 Donington Historic Festival will also see several examples of the type of period Bentleys which put the marque into the motorsport history books out on track in Motor Racing Legends’ ‘Mad Jack’ race for Pre-War Sports Cars. 

Q&A Panel sessions

2003 Le Mans-winning Bentley driver Guy Smith – who is also racing at the event - will take part in a Q&A session alongside Howden Haynes, Data Engineer for Team Bentley during their 2001-2003 Le Mans campaign, giving the audience the lowdown on Bentley’s return to the epic endurance race after a gap of 70 years. And Touring Car fans can find out more about the world of Touring Cars, witha  Q&A session with 2012 World Touring Car Champion and 2020 Scandinavian Touring Car Champion Rob Huff. Rob will also be racing at the weekend .

Festival Art Exhibition

Last year we held the first-ever Donington Historic Festival art exhibition, and this year it's back and it's bigger! Several artists are featuring the epic pre-War Bentley Le Mans events, including John Ketchell and Neil Collins. Other renowned artists represented include Richard Wheatland, sculptor Robin Bark, car designer and crayon artist Harry Gravett and pencil artist Emma Capener, who was one of the stand-out artists at DHF 2023. We'll also have one of crystal artist Tracy Stokes’ extraordinary, full-sized replicas of the helmet Ayrton Senna wore when he secured his first F1 World Championship, in 1988, embellished with an astonishing 49,104 Swarovski crystals. 

Get up close in the Paddock - and take a Pitlane walk

If you want to have a look what’s under the bonnet of these classic racers, this is where you need to be – and don’t forget to take a peep inside the pit garages for more race preparation action during the lunchtime pitlane walks. The Paddock is a great place to get some terrific photos as well - fancy a selfie of you and the kids with a D-type? Or perhaps a quick video of a pre-War Bentley engine roaring into life? Another excellent spot for photos and video is the Assembly Area in the Paddock near Redgate - the spectacle when the grids fire up and start making their way out onto the track is definitely well worth experiencing!

Car clubs on display

Don’t forget to head to the Infield and the Melbourne Hairpin, where dozens of car clubs large and small will have hundreds of cars on display. The owners love to show off their treasured vehicles, so if you’ve always wanted to have a look inside a Lotus Elan or to peep under the bonnet of a Datsun 240Z, this is your chance! Who knows? You might be inspired to invest in your own classic or sports car and bring it along to DHF 2025! And watch out for the lunchtime parades, when dozens of these classics take to the track.

Battle of Britain Memorial Flight flypasts

Eyes to the skies each day of the Festival, when we are treated to a flypast from a Spitfire/Hurricane duo from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

Image: Crown Copyright

Shopping at the Festival

To take home more than just happy memories of a wonderful weekend, head to the trade village where you’ll find stands selling everything from clothing and accessories to memorabilia, artwork, photographs and motorsport and motoring books. You might even make a (very!) early start on the Christmas shopping…

Take a Sporting Bears classic and supercar Dream Ride

We’re delighted to welcome the Sporting Bears back to the Festival for another year. You’ll find them based just inside the entrance to the Paddock – so make sure you check them out, and hopefully go for a spin! This year’s Festival visitors will be able to make a donation to benefit the Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People, based in Loughborough, in return for a 10-mile passenger ride around local roads in a very special car. 

Check out the karts!

Many of the great F1 drivers including Ayrton Senna, Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel started their careers in karts. The members of the British Historic Kart Club, who celebrate the Golden Era of British Karting from 1959 to 1997, are bringing along a fine selection of these nimble little machines for you to look at in the Paddock. You might find yourself tempted to take up the sport…