I think "Duxford Disappointment" is a misleading thread title here as it implies there was actually some problem or failing at Duxford, where this was not the case at all.
For those of us who travel regularly on business, such happens from time to time. Equally the rental car could have broken down on the motorway (if unfixable by the AA this would take probably just as long to supply a replacement), or the cloudbase could have been 100 feet and the show cancelled.