So what did you do for May Bank Holiday? Stuck in a traffic jam on the way to the garden centre perhaps, or trawl around a shopping mall in search of not quite sure what, maybe even devalue your property a bit with some dodgy DIY. Or even possibly dream up new ways of taxing travellers on the road and in the air.

Mercifully, here in France most of the above was not even an option, for on 1st May everything closes for the day and about the only retail opportunity you’ll find is the traditional roadside ‘muguet’ (lily-of-the-valley) sellers, and even they are in short supply this year thanks to the harsh winter.

What better way to enjoy the spring weather than to get out your classic and head for a show, and here in the Pas de Calais all roads lead to the picturesque old market town of Hesdin. For the seventeenth year running the local band of enthusiasts – numbering just 32 members – known as ‘Les Petroleuses Hesdinoises’ organised their annual Bourse D’Echanges (autojumble); in recent years this has expanded into something of an impromptu show too, as the car park adjacent to the venue is now reserved for old cars, and what a variety it attracts.

French makes inevitably dominate of course with Citroen 2CVs and Traction Avants in plentiful supply, but when did you last see an Ami, or even a Bijou? Renault too was well represented with R8s seemingly particularly popularly, especially with rally modifications. Another rarity now, an R17, was a genuine rally car however. Peugeot’s were mostly of an older generation, including a lovely 301 and 601, frequently seen out locally as the proprietor of the towns’ Peugeot dealership owns it. A more recent model unfamiliar to us was a 4x4 504 Pick-up.

Hotchkiss of course is a brand long gone, but they are a regular sight at French shows, with three or four from the early 1950s present here. Unusually, they were built with right-hand drive.

British classics have long been popular in France, and as I filled in my name on the draw ticket at the entrance, the man noticed my English name and leaning forward, said in a whisper 'we’ve got a Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow here.'  And indeed they had. Other bolides from Blighty included various MGs and Spitfires, a Mini and a Triumph Vitesse in urgent need of a little TLC. An early XJ6 in two-tone silver and maroon didn’t look too clever either.

Germany was represented by a plethora of VW Beetles, a couple of Kombi’s and an unusual little DKW cabriolet. Oh, and a Ford Taunus in pink…

A delightful way to spend the day in a very pleasant, relaxed atmosphere so redolent of this part of the world where one is always assured of a welcome, especially as the beer and chips flowed at lunchtime. The venue itself, the Salle du Manege, has an interesting history of its own, having originally been an indoor riding school for the military at the time of World War 1 and has been very sympathetically maintained.

By the way, that draw ticket I mentioned. The princely sum of three euros entry fee saw me entered into a draw to win a bright yellow Renault 4.

Just do nicely for next year…