Club life in March started as usual with Club Night at the Barns on the 7^th where we welcomed new members Steve and Carole Allen to the Club, they have a newly acquired restored MGB GT. A good turnout of 44 members enjoyed a fascinating after dinner speech by our guest speaker, Rodney Paul, on the life and the Antarctic expeditions of the explorer Ernest Shackleton. What a story! With temperatures of minus 40 degrees making our recent weather a heat wave!

Keith and Chris Timmis organized our own version of TV`s Bargain Hunt with a visit to the Dagfields Craft and Antique Centre on the 17th.  After coffee at Dobbies, 14 cars set off on a rolling 46 mile run to arrive in time for lunch. No surprise there then. The afternoon was spent mooching around the stalls for that undiscovered treasure to make a fortune at auction but sadly without success. Highlight of the day for my wife was the Teddy Bear Shop with bears of every colour and size looking for owners. One in particular caught her eye but he wouldn’t fit in the car!   

The March 3^rd Thursday Coffee morning was held at a new venue, the Ranch Bistro at Cannock Chase Trekking Centre, one I`m sure we will return to in the future. 28 members made the trip to enjoy a morning`s natter over coffee and tea cakes, sadly a trip to the dentist to have a wisdom tooth extracted meant we could not attend, ouch! In addition to our MG`s there was also plenty of horsepower of the four legged variety on show at the attached stables.

At the end of March the itinerary of our Norfolk trip in May was announced, with trains and boats and cars all being involved, can`t wait.

A well-attended February Club night at the Barns was also our A.G.M. quickly summed up as follows:  2023 review - successful year, Club finances- solvent, Committee- re elected, A.O.B. – none, job done! A warm welcome went to new members Peter and Anne Colman with yet another MG RV8 which we seem to be attracting like a Magnette, get it? Especially pleasing was the announcement of granting life membership to Charles Hartley and Alan Slater in recognition of their many years of service to the Club.

The Third Thursday Coffee Morning attracted 28 members and saw us return to the Forest Restaurant at Grangewood where we had a private room set aside. A really good natter morning with most enjoying coffee or tea and perhaps a tea cake. Could not help noticing however, that some members could not resist the lure of the bacon, egg and sausage sandwiches on offer, claiming that they had missed breakfast, yeah!

For our traditional February Snowdrop Run we returned on the 18^th to a popular destination, Calke Abbey in Derbyshire. 36 members met up at Brykley Garden Centre before setting off on a 30 mile tulip run to the Abbey. With many of our MG`s still hibernating some attended in their daily drivers which increasingly include some of new MG models. The weather was kind and a walk in the grounds was enjoyed with the snowdrops in bloom. As usual we gathered in the tea shop to enjoy some refreshments before setting off home after a very pleasant day.

Ferrari`s not MG`s were the  attraction when we visited the Red Carpet Cinema to watch the film Enzo, a biography of Enzo Ferrari based round his scandalous private life and his teams entry in the tragic 1957 Mille Miglia race. Great motor racing shots!

2024 got off to a prompt start on the 4^th January with our Club night at the Barns with Paul Titley presenting the programme of events for the year that he and the team have put together. It`s going to be a busy year with away days trips , tulip runs, coffee mornings, car shows, drive and dine evenings and many more events to look forward to. Our aim is by offering a wide range of activities we can hopefully ensure that there will be something for all members to enjoy and are always open to new suggestions.  Then we just need the weather to play ball to make it perfect!

With the excesses of Christmas a distant memory and New Year`s resolutions forgotten SMGEC members soon fell back into old habits, yes the craving for coffee and food returned. This was soon satisfied by a well attended coffee morning on the 18^th at Aston Marina, good preparation for a blow out Sunday Lunch on the 21^st at the Unicorn Inn at Orton on the Hill with 40 members attending. Back to normal then!

SMGEC have been long time supporters of the Donna Louise /Dougie Mac Charity and during 2023 we organised raffles, a charity run and other fund raising activities resulting in being able to make a donation of £1350 towards their tremendous work.

A warm welcome to the Club for new members Colin and Sharon Wiltshire. Their MGTF brings the total of MGF/TF`s in the Club to 23, second only to the 26 MGB`s we have. Interestingly we now have 9 MG RV8`s in the fleet, quite a few given the small number made and in total we have 25 different MG models ranging from a 1933 J2 to a 2023 MG4 Trophy, 90 years of enjoying MG motoring!

No MG motoring in December but to compensate Sue Dudley again organized a super Christmas party at the Barns with 44 members enjoying the festivities. A pre-Christmas coffee morning at The Strawberry Cabin rounded out the year.

Our 2024 calendar, masterminded by Paul Titley and the committee, includes a wide selection of MG motoring and social events throughout the year. As usual our monthly club nights are at the Barns with guest speakers, games nights and natter nights on the programme. The ever popular third Thursday coffee mornings are again a regular feature with organizers Brian and June Cooper taking us to some new venues this year. Keith and Gill Johnson`s planned Drive and Dine nights should satisfy the foodies in the Club, which is most of the membership!

Car shows are popular with SMGEC members and so we will be attending 4 this year including a return to an old favourite, Trentham Gardens but sadly no Lupin Farm this year.

To put some miles on the MG`s clocks we have 10 runs planned by members including visits to NT properties, an antique centre, a sheep dog trial, the Midlands Air Ambulance, a narrow gauge railway, a famous pottery and a historic battlefield. Highlights include a 3 night visit to Norfolk in May planned by Bob and Irene Stone. Based at The Heacham Hall Hotel we will be exploring the area during the day and enjoying some fine dining in the evenings. A weekend away in September to Sywell piston and Props is also on the list.

SMGEC offers all MG owners the opportunity to enjoy classic motoring along with a wide range of social activities as members of a friendly group of fellow enthusiasts.  Interested, then find out more by visiting our web site for membership details?

The onset of winter in November saw Club life move indoors with many of our MG`s tucked away until next year. The November Club night at the Barns saw 36 members gathering for dinner followed by our Annual Awards night. This is the opportunity to receive plaudits for glorious achievement or slide under the table in shame for motoring disasters! The election was under the firm control of Phil Wellstead, just like Election Night on the BBC!

This year`s worthy winners and unfortunate losers were.

Services to the Club               Des and Gill Barnard.

Driver of the Year                   Jeff Darlow.

Co-driver of the year             Gill Barnard

Newcomers award                 Michael and Heather Steventon.

Breakdown of the year          Phil and Cathy Wellstead.

Special breakdown award     Keith and Chris Timmis.

Chairman`s award                   Keith and Gill Johnson.

The trophy presentation followed with applause and commiserations from the members. Thankfully the breakdown bills were considerably lower than the horrendous bills of the last 2 years.

November`s coffee morning at Byrkley garden centre was attended by 40 members proving how they have become a major part of Club life, recognizing that the majority of members are retired. Only two MG`s in the car park though, one was Chairman Roger`s MGB, much to the chagrin of wife Sue who had meticulously polished it thinking it was off the road for the winter! The other was my own TF with a stoved in front wing from a car park bang.

The month ended with a coffee and film morning at the Red Carpet Cinema at Barton Marina hosted by Sue Dudley. 24 members enjoyed the natter with 12 stopping on to watch the film, Napoleon by Ridley Scott. Only our Christmas Party and a coffee morning are left in 2023 but exciting plans for 2024 are already in place.