2019 MG Nationals

By: Cliff Chambers, Photography by: Cliff Chambers

Date: 31.12.2019

Rubber and chrome bumpers represented different eras at the MG Golden Jubilee national meeting in Queensland

There are few tasks in the automotive world more prone to disaster and devoid of thanks than organising a major car-club gathering.

Finding decent accommodation and venues at affordable prices, keeping participants entertained and fully fed are skills that qualify event organisers for sainthood. However, not even divine connections can do anything about the weather.

This year’s MG National Meeting centred on the Redland Bay region of Brisbane, with a display venue that backed directly onto beautiful Moreton Bay. Trust me, it is a beautiful spot – you just had to be able to see it between the constant showers and occasional sub-tropical torrent.

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Weather aside, this was a very special event. In January 1970 the first MG Car Club National Meeting had been held in Sydney and this year’s Brisbane gathering celebrated the Nationals’ Golden Jubilee.

MGs of all ages, styles and types came from all parts of the country including a couple of Bs that drove from Western Australia and a Tasmanian contingent. Participants weren’t there just to socialise and show off their cars either. The week-long programme included drives to various locales around Brisbane, a motorkhana and – for the brave – a chance to challenge the Armco and big trees on the Mt Cotton hillclimb course.

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Easter Saturday was Concours d’Elegance day and around 120 perfectly-presented MGs would squelch their way across lush grass to almost fill the vast expanse of Cleveland Point’s G. J. Walter Park.

Despite intermittent deluges, judging did proceed. Judging a wet car takes special skill and experience and no one was going to ask even the most dedicated expert to go belly-down on a saturated paddock to inspect chassis components. Although disappointing for those owners who had loving cleaned their cars’ undersides, nothing below knee level was looked at.

With classes for pretty much every type of MG and numerous intra-model variants as well, there were lots of category trophies to be engraved but only three ‘Outright Concours’ winners.

Top of the heap in Pre-MGA was Jason Edwards’ TD, with Allan Fabry’s MGC GT winning in Pre-1980 and Fran Hodgson’s red ZR sedan picking up the prize for Post-1980 cars.

Next year the MG Nationals head to Victoria.

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