The Bespoked Handmade Bicycle Show is Europe’s largest bi-annual exhibition of custom bikes, hosted across various UK locations since its inception in 2011. The show celebrates unique, one-off, or small-batch bikes and accessories, with talented builders showcasing their craftsmanship and vision. The last weekend of April saw the 2025 edition taking place and Gravel Union’s roving reporter Valerio Stuart was there to taken in the action. 

In the last couple of years, Bespoked has found a home at the historic Victoria Baths in Manchester. Although I haven’t attended the show at previous venues, I can’t imagine a more fitting location for this gathering of quirky, intriguing and beautifully crafted bikes. Every corner of the Baths offers unique and characterful details; it was a real pleasure to get lost among tiles, bricks, woodwork — and, of course, beautiful bicycles.

This was my first time attending Bespoked and I’ll admit I was sceptical about whether I would enjoy it: I prefer riding bikes to simply looking at them. But Bespoked proved to be so much more than just a gallery of eye candy. It was an opportunity to catch up with friends, chat about past and future events. Several industry talks by builders, riders and designers were also on the schedule, adding further depth to the event.

The cycling industry has faced — and continues to face — real challenges over the past few years. Small-batch manufacturers may have been somewhat less affected than larger businesses, although the recent US tariffs were a hot topic, with the non-American origins of some frames proudly highlighted by sarcastic stars-and-stripes stickers.

The humanitarian crisis in Palestine was also present in the discussions. Gaza Sunbirds co-founder Karim Ali shared the story of Palestinian cyclist Alaa al Dali, who turned personal tragedy into a mission of hope. In the Gaza Strip, he co-founded the Sunbirds, a para-cycling team that not only trains athletes with disabilities but also provides aid to the local population during the Israeli siege.

Did Someone say Mad Max?

This year saw the debut of the Bespoked Build Off, themed “APOCALYPSE.” Builders were challenged to create their interpretation of an apocalypse-ready bike, using old, broken, or low-value components in creative ways. Their ingenuity was judged by a panel of award-winning builders. Entries featured axes, fuel tanks, barbecues (complete with doll-body parts), chicken cages and nuclear radiation detectors. Possibly the most mind-blowing thing? The bikes were actually raced by their creators — during Bespoked — in what must be the most epic time trial ever seen in this pre-apocalyptic world.

Gravel is King

While hardtails, full-suspension mountain bikes and a smattering of road, TT and hybrid bikes were on display, gravel bikes absolutely stole the show. Nearly every builder had at least one gravel bike on display and while the definition of “gravel” covers an increasingly broad spectrum, there were unmistakable common threads: drop bars, steel frames, clearance for 45mm tyres and mounting points galore.

The gravel bikes ranged from CX-oriented builds to monster gravel bikes ready for the gnarliest singletrack.

Several builds stood out:

• 18 Bikes showcased a gravel bike that can easily convert from analogue to e-bike (and back), using a battery “bottle” mounted in a standard bottle cage and a motor hidden in the rear hub. The required wiring runs inside the downtube of the frame — designed and built in the Peak District.
• Shand brought a Stramash build featuring a Rohloff hub, Columbus tubing and an inverted suspension fork — a machine for endless all-terrain exploration.
• Axalko presented a sub-8kg gravel bike made from locally sourced wood and carbon fibre in the Basque Country, promising greater vibration absorption, comfort and durability, alongside a more sustainable manufacturing process.

Bespoked isn’t just about bikes, though — components, wheels and bag manufacturers were well represented too.

Special mention goes to Tailfin for their impeccable stand, showcasing the latest Aeropack Cargo and a few soon-to-be-released items. Tailfin also brought members of their R&D team, including Atlas Mountain Race winner Alex McCormack (and his Fairlight Holt), Justinas Leveika, Miron Golfman and Josh Ibbett. It’s rare to see so much bikepacking royalty gathered in one place and it was great to chat with them and the Tailfin team about the development process behind their products.

Choosing my favourite bikes was never going to be easy, but the ones that truly drew me back again and again were these:

Sideways

Sideways stood out not just because they manufacture in the north of England (not far from Newcastle upon Tyne), but because they produce completely bespoke carbon frames. When I first spoke with Viola, the maker, I assumed she must be working with steel — the frames’ look didn’t quite match that assumption though. Instead, she handcrafts carbon frames, each personalised to suit the vision of the future owner: from geometry to paintwork.

Each frame and fork are true one-offs, requiring bespoke moulds and numerous conversations to understand the rider’s dream. Her gravel bike is ready to go fast and far, thanks to its aggressive geometry and must be great fun to ride. While some designers shy away from adding rack mounts to carbon frames for aesthetic reasons, Viola embraces the utilitarian side of her builds.

Drust

Anyone attending Bespoked will have walked past Drust’s Heckmeck at the entrance, its paintwork perfectly matching the surrounding green tiles and mosaics. A lucky coincidence or a thoughtfully crafted plan? Either way, it was impossible not to stop and stare.

I can’t pinpoint a single extraordinary feature, yet it embodied everything I would want in a gravel bike and nothing I wouldn't. With generous tyre clearance and relaxed geometry, it’s a bike I could point down a rocky descent without thinking twice, yet I don’t expect it would feel sluggish pounding out tarmac miles to the trails. External cable routing makes for easy servicing. As the saying goes: “Simple can be harder than complex” — and for me, this bike encapsulated what gravel bikes are about.

Singular

Long before gravel became mainstream, Singular Cycles were paving the way for drop-bar 29ers with high stack and big tyre clearance. Their Gryphon model debuted in 2008, well ahead of its time.

At Bespoked, every Singular bike exuded elegance and a timeless appeal. It was brilliant to see their Gryphon in its titanium configuration: a bike ready for fast, non-technical singletrack loaded with a month’s worth of provisions. The Singular Pegasus, a titanium hardtail, was surprisingly light for its size, with ample space for bags and bottles. However, the real showstopper for me was the brand-new Kite Ti frameset, paired with hammered mudguards and Ingrid components.

Sam, Singular’s designer and owner, explained his holistic approach to design, where no component is developed in isolation. The newly designed fork saves weight without compromising ride quality — and looks perfect on the frame. It’s exactly the kind of gravel bike I love: ready for off-road action on chunky 2.1” tyres, without hesitation — even if you’re just shy of 15 stone, like me! Singular bikes come in standard sizes but can be customised, with different tubing profiles tailored for different rider sizes.

Aeght

You might have noticed a crescendo in my favourite gravel selections and I’ve saved Aeight’s ÄXE.Ultimate Beach Racer for last. Arguably more mountain bike than gravel, it shares a surprising amount with one of my personal bikes — and I’d love to ride it to see how material and geometry differences play out.

Built in Sussex by UCI mechanic and racer Glen, this bike was designed for the brutal Battle on the Beach race: drop bars, RockShox SID Ultimate forks and 60mm Schwalbe G-One Speed Pro tyres. The frame is constructed from Reynolds 853 steel tubing and has a 69° head tube angle. Hope Pro 5 hubs complete the package. This machine looks unstoppable — whether tearing across sandy beaches or shredding singletrack.

The smoked rear end and organic, earthy paintwork made it a real head-turner — and it’s no surprise it won the Best Finish award at Bespoked. My only (tiny) gripe? I would have loved to see it paired with even wider, flared drop bars for added control on gnarlier descents.

So, what's next? 

Bespoked returns over the weekend of 10-12 October 2025 at the amazing venue of the Dresden Airport. The organisers are expecting more than 100 exhibitors to be there. You can find out all the details on the Bespoked website.