British International Motor Show cancelled

The British International Motor Show has cancelled next year's show as the recession starts to bite.

Last year's show - it is on every other year - welcomed just under half a million visitors to ExCel in London's Docklands.

But the recession has stuffed it up for next year's showcase.

A statement on the website says: "The economic downturn and the unprecedented challenges facing the industry both in the UK and around the world, have made it impossible for exhibitors to commit to a 2010 event."

It claims to be Britain's biggest consumer trade show. Last year the 12-day event had 60 vehicle manufacturers and 600 cars on display.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has been running the shows since the first event at Crystal Palace in 1903. The following year it moved to Olympia where it remained for 32 years. It then wandered around various venues in the UK. In 2006 the show returned to London. ®