MCL 2025 kicks off on Saturday
The UK’s biggest motorcycle event of the year begins its nine-day run this weekend at the NEC in Birmingham.
This is pretty much your last chance to buy advance tickets for MCL 2025 – the UK’s largest annual motorcycle show. Sure, you can buy tickets at the door, but they’ll cost more.
Doors at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham will open at 10am Saturday, with attendees treated to more than a week of everything motorcycle, including test rides, demonstrations, talks, exhibits, stunt shows and – most importantly – almost 50 manufacturers showcasing their line-ups.
For moto-nerds like us, that’s often one of the high points: simply being able to throw a leg over the majority of the bikes that are currently available in the UK market, without having to make a trek to a dealer and suffer awkward small talk.
Let’s say, for example, that you’ve always been intrigued by the BMW K1600 B but aren’t yet so interested that you want to be having a conversation with a salesperson about buying one. MCL25 is for you.
Or, let’s say you’ve read about the new Honda CB1000GT on Visordown and you’d like to get up and close and personal with one, then be able to visually and physically compare it to the likes of the Tracer 9, or Triumph Tiger Sport 800, or Suzuki GSX-S1000GX. Which one looks best in your opinion? Which one feels the best for your height and riding stance? Again, MCL25 is for you.
Want to actually ride some of the bikes? MCL25 is for you. Ten different manufacturers will be offering almost 60 different models of bike and scooter – both petrol-powered and electric – for you to take out for a spin.
Never ridden a bike before? You know where this goes. Every day during the show, the Learn to Ride Zone will offer free motorcycle lessons with a professional instructor – protective clothing is all provided, too.
Outside of that, there is an almost endless schedule of events offering up everything from live music to talks from motorcycling icons, celebrities, influencers, and experts. Oh, and food – which has gotten much better since I first started attending the show (then known as Motorcycle Live) some 15 years ago.
You can get to the NEC by car and public transportation, of course. If you travel by the latter you can enjoy the beer that’s available in the hall.
But if you’re riding, you’ll be happy to know that safe and secure parking is free – under cover and out of whatever the weather ends up being. There’s also a place where you can check your gear, so you don’t need to walk around carrying your helmet.
MCL25 runs from 15-23 November. To find out about everything that’s happening (there’s a lot) and book tickets, visit the MCL25 website.
For more motorcycle news stick with Visordown.
Chris Cope is a fourth-generation journalist, originally from Texas. He has lived in the UK for roughly two decades and has been writing about motorcycles for most of that time. He has written for dozens of publications and websites in the UK, US, Canada, and Australia.
