Inside the British Grand Prix: Fans brave the rain and the £400 price of admission, with appearances from Stormzy and Brad Pitt that confirm the Silverstone weekend is about much more than just racing
- Hamilton won the British Grand Prix to claim his first race victory since 2021
- Thousands of fans had descended on Silverstone to watch the weekend's racing
- The British Grand Prix is expensive, but many believe the price is worth paying
As dusk fell in this little haven of Northamptonshire on Friday night, the whirring and whining of V6 hybrid engines finally began to dissipate into the increasingly dim and rainy sky.
That unmistakeable rumble and the bitter waft of burnt rubber which follows was soon replaced by a thumping beat; the kind that reverberates through your body.
It did not come from the footsteps of thousands of soggy Formula One fans, though the direction they were heading gave a clue as to the source of the racket.
There, up on the Silverstone main stage, stood Stormzy, British rapping royalty, playing only his second gig of the year in weather that belied the calendar.
It was another reminder that the weekend is about far more than just the racing. It needs to be too when tickets for this year’s British Grand Prix started at an eye-watering £400. Those after a seat in the grandstand were forced to shell out a further £200 on top of that.
Fans descended on Northamptonshire to take in all the sights and sounds of the British GP
British rapping royalty Stormzy performed for the assembled masses at Silverstone on Friday night
Lewis Hamilton won the British Grand Prix for a record ninth time, but has described prices at Silverstone as being 'hugely expensive'
Silverstone bosses have copped plenty of stick for those prices, not least from Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time world champion and darling of British Formula One racing.
Hamilton won his home race for a record-extending ninth time on Sunday - his first victory since December 2021. The result further highlighted his status as the 'King of Silverstone'.
Yet Hamilton, who has a net worth of £300million, even he saw fit to describe the prices charged as being ‘hugely expensive’.
It isn’t only the cost of a ticket which leaves punters’ wallets a little lighter. Just wait until you get inside the confines of this 600-acre site - you’d better have been saving up.
Punters pay a pretty penny for pork pies and paella
Food and drink at sporting events is never cheap, and Silverstone is no exception.
280 outlets serving 90 different cuisines – from paella to pork pies – sounds like a culinary treat. Those visiting on a budget, however, would be well advised to bring a packed lunch.
Fancy a bacon roll to warm you up in the morning? That’ll be £8, please. And a coffee to go with it? That’ll be another £4.50.
What about in the afternoon when you’re craving a stronger tipple? Well, a pint of Heineken costs £7.70 and a whisky and coke £13.50. Fans feeling especially lavish can buy a bottle of bubbly for £122.
And whatever happened to a 99 Flake costing exactly that? You won’t get much change out of a fiver for one at Silverstone.
Mail Sport had a particularly underwhelming experience at dinner on Thursday. £13 out of the bank account for a ‘Halloumi bowl’, which contained around a quarter of a beef tomato, a baby-sized handful of shredded lettuce and a few slices of cucumber. No chips, either, as advertised on the menu.
A stay in the Hilton Garden Inn (right), which boasts prime viewing of the Hamilton straight, costs just over £100 a night for most of the year
Hollywood star Brad Pitt arrived at the race track ahead of free practice three on Saturday
Then there’s deciding where you’re going to put your head for the evening. For the 60,000 happy to brave the weather and camp, prices for a basic pitch on the nearby Silverstone Golf Club start at £150 and rise all the way to £850.
Those who fancy a comfier night in the land of nod will need to fork out between £950 and £1,900 to go glamping (that’s posh camping for those unfamiliar with the craze).
A stay in the Hilton Garden Inn, which boasts prime viewing of the Hamilton straight, costs just over £100 a night for most of the year. Those prices rise considerably, though, when the British Grand Prix is on.
The hotel offering has been extended this year with the opening of Escapade, a luxury accommodation complex overlooking the circuit which boasts a gym, pool, sauna and spa. Trackside residences in these shipping container-like buildings cost around £2million, with owners then able to make a pretty fortune by renting them out over the weekend. £80,000 for the four days the Formula One circus rolls into town, if one report is to be believed.
On the subject of the high life, there are eight different hospitality packages to choose from, ranging from £975 to £2,745 per person on raceday alone. For the top end, you can enjoy a prime view of the action while tucking into food cooked by Michelin-star chefs.
You want to come suitably dressed for the occasion, too. One can assume the £65 Mercedes baseball caps won’t be doing a roaring trade this weekend with the sun nowhere to be seen.
The rich and famous were out in force over the weekend too. Brad Pitt was spotted in the VIP areas as filming continues for the new F1 movie he stars in, which is due to air next summer.
Darts’ teenage sensation Luke Littler was whisked around the track by Lando Norris before throwing some arrows with Max Verstappen.
Last year singer Shakira, model Cara Delevigne and actor Damian Lewis all made a quick pit-stop at Silverstone too. Take a stroll down the Silverstone paddock and it’s hard not to bump into a celebrity of some kind.
Darts’ teenage sensation Luke Littler was whisked around the track by Lando Norris before throwing some arrows with Max Verstappen
Is the price of admission worth it?
It is, though, undeniably an expensive few days. A quick scroll of social media tells you there are plenty of fans for whom the cost of tickets alone has proved prohibitive.
But for those lucky ones – all 480,000 of them, across the weekend – the big question is: is it worth it? The fans Mail Sport spoke to were close to unequivocal: absolutely, yes.
For them, four days of non-stop action on the track, plenty of opportunities for Q&A sessions with drivers past and present, gaming areas and the live entertainment offering feels like value for money.
Kings of Leon dazzled crowds on Thursday, in a much more pleasant climate, before DJ Pete Tong and a 52-piece orchestra take to the stage on Friday and pop act Rudimental on Sunday.
It doesn’t stop at the music either. There’s also a comedy club and 2,000-capacity nightclub.
The weekend, then, is about much more than the 52 laps of action during Sunday’s race.
The British Grand Prix weekend is about much more than the 52 laps of action during Sunday's race
And it should not be forgotten that putting together a stellar entertainment card comes at an eye-watering cost for Silverstone, who already pay £30million per year to host the race. The British Grand Prix is one of only two races in the 2024 calendar that receives no government or public funding to help meet the cost of hosting.
That bill is bound to land at someone’s door. Perhaps the punters are hit a little hard, but few argue they’re not getting bang for their buck.
Sadly there remains one thing money can’t buy: some decent weather. It’s the least the fans deserve.
