Give UK motorcycle history as a gift, with the National Motorcycle Museum
A Friends of the National Motorcycle Museum membership offers the rare chance to ride, explore and get hands-on with Britain’s two-wheeled history.
If you’ve got a motorcycle-obsessed relative who insists they “don’t need anything,” the National Motorcycle Museum has the answer. Forget socks printed with V-twins or another bottle of chain lube; this Christmas, you can give them something you definitely won’t find on Amazon: a Friends of the National Motorcycle Museum membership.
It’s a present that doesn’t just sit on a shelf — it gets them closer to the machines that shaped British motorcycling. And for 2026, the scheme is promising even more ways to get hands-on with the biggest collection of British motorcycles anywhere in the world.
A Gift You Can Actually Ride
Most museums ask you to step back behind the rope and admire the polished tanks and engineering from afar. The National Motorcycle Museum, and its Friend of the Museum scheme, invites you to swing a leg over them and experience them on the road instead.
One of the most popular perks for Friends members is the Ride a Classic Bike Day, a chance to ride machines that would normally live behind glass — often bikes worth more than most riders’ houses. It’s the kind of experience that’s impossible to replicate in the modern market, where historic motorcycles are either too delicate, too rare, or too expensive to touch. The thinking behind the scheme is that bikes, especially old British-built bikes, don’t really enjoy sitting around unused.
Getting riders out and about on the exhibits helps to stretch their legs as was intended, while also giving the NMM team a chance to spot any niggles and issues that require attention. More than that, putting classic bikes in the hands of riders who would otherwise not be able to experience them is a great way of keeping the UK’s famous (and at one time world-conquering) motorcycle industry at the forefront of people’s minds.
Museum Director James Hewing explains it simply: the membership isn’t about having a connection to history, it’s about taking part in it. “Our aim is to give enthusiasts the chance not just to be part of the Museum — but to take part,” he says. Anyone who’s ever dreamed of kickstarting a BSA or thumping along on a classic Norton knows exactly what that means.
And it’s not just about the riding, either. Friends get access to behind-the-scenes tours, priority bookings for special events, and exclusive updates on the museum’s restoration work. There are also specialist insurance discounts, useful for anyone who’s thinking about buying the classic they fall in love with during a museum ride day.
A Friends Membership lasts a full year, but for anyone who loves motorcycles, it’s likely to linger much longer. Whether it’s a first taste of British engineering history or a nostalgic return to machines they grew up around, it’s a gift that creates stories, not clutter.
And it’s definitely better than another pair of socks or a Lynx Java gift box.
You can find out more information about becoming a Friend of the National Motorcycle Museum on the official website.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
