British International Motor Show binned

The next iteration of the biannual British Motor show, scheduled for 2010, has been cancelled.

The British show has been a fixture on the global motor show circuit since its first running in 1903, barring the world war years.

For almost a century the show was held in Birmingham, traditional home of the British motor industry. Three years ago it was relocated to London, but 2008 proved to be the event's swansong. The show's highlight was the international reveal of the Lotus Evora.

Although it's still 15 months away, show organisers the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) couldn't commit to having enough exhibitors to reach a critical mass needed to meet costs.

The British show was that country's largest expo for consumers, but was low in the international prestige stakes, being eclipsed by the Geneva show in March, and the alternating Frankfurt and Paris shows in the northern hemisphere's autumn.

The news of the cancellation follows the demise of all of Australia's current show arrangements, including Brisbane show and the amalgamation of the Melbourne and Sydney shows into a single annual event alternating between the two centres.

The global financial slowdown has hit the car industry especially hard, with cut-backs and fewer new-model introductions evident at both last November's Los Angeles and January's Detroit shows.