The Farmers Mart Apr/May 2016 - Issue 45 | Page 19

Great Yorkshire Show

The
history

Don’t miss
England’s Premier
Agricultural Show!
»»THE GREAT YORKSHIRE
Show features the best of British
farming and is England’s premier
agricultural show. Held at the
Great Yorkshire Showground
in Harrogate it gives first-hand
experience of agriculture and
rural life through demonstrations
and exhibitions as well as a ‘not
to be missed’ insight into the
very latest in the agricultural
industry. There are exciting ring
displays, the main ring attraction
for 2016 is the amazing Bolddog
Lings Motorcycle Display Team!
More than 1,200 stands with
everything from country clothing
to combine harvesters should
ensure there is something for
everyone.
Organised by the Yorkshire
Agricultural Society (YAS), the
Show is held each July and
attracts around 130,000 visitors
over the three days. Dates for

the 2016 event are Tuesday 12
– Thursday 14 July which will be
the 158th show.
The competitive classes are at
the heart of the event attracting
around 13,000 entries, ranging
from prize-winning bulls to
poultry to international show
jumpers. The large live robotic
milking exhibition from Lely,
Incorporating 40 cattle near the
main cattle wash area will be a
big draw - and there are cutting
edge fashion shows, cookery
demonstrations from top chefs,
and the Discovery Zone which
is a hive of activities aimed at
young people. There will also
be delicious regional food
and a new food theatre in the
new exhibition hall 1 which will
contain the Food Show and the
Cheese & Dairy Show with hall 2
becoming a Home & Gift Hall.
LIVE ROBOTIC MILKING
FROM LELY
Bound to attract a lot of
attention this year will be a live
robotic milking exhibition from
Lely with 40 cattle providing
an opportunity to see how
technology is changing the face
of modern dairying. In addition,

the Aberdeen-Angus Cattle
Society is holding its Summer
National Show with around 100
head of cattle expected.
HRH the Prince of Wales
is the Society’s Patron and is
a frequent visitor along with
HRH The Duchess of Cornwall.
Over the years the event has
attracted many royal visitors
including HM The Queen and
HRH The Duke of Edinburgh.
Stars of stage and screen can
often be spotted amongst the
crowds, as well as Government
ministers and leaders of
industry.
The Yorkshire Agricultural
Society runs a number of
events at the showground
across the year with last
month’s Springtime Live held on
Sunday 3 April 2016 – attracting
the crowds with plenty of
hands-on activities particularly
aimed at young families.
Later in the year, Countryside
Live: Saturday 22 & Sunday
23 October 2016 – the Great
Yorkshire Show’s little sister
event, will take place – you can
catch up with the programme
in future issues of The Farmers
Mart.

»»THE GREAT YORKSHIRE
Show was born in October
1837 when a group of leading
agriculturalists, led by the third
Earl Spencer, met at the Black
Swan Hotel in Coney Street,
York to discuss the future of
the farming industry.
British Home Stores now
stands on the site of the
original Black Swan Hotel in
York but a plaque on the wall
outside records the historical
fact that the Society was
formed at the Hotel.
From that first meeting
came the decision to form an
organisation - the Yorkshire
Agricultural Society - whose
aims were to improve and
develop agriculture and hold
an annual agricultural show
of excellence.
Thus the wheels were
set in motion and the first
Yorkshire Show was held in
Fulford, York, in 1838.
Then, in 1950, the
innovative decision was
taken to build a permanent
showground. The Harrogate
site was purchased and
its imaginative layout and
excellent facilities quickly
resulted in it becoming a
role model for others.
In 1992 the decision
was made to remain on
the Harrogate site and
an ambitious £10m redevelopment programme
began. Since then the
Showground’s prestigious
conference and events
venue, the Yorkshire Events
Centre and Pavilions of
Harrogate have gone from
strength to strength. In
addition the number of events
staged on the Showground
year round has increased
dramatically - it is now busy 12
months of the year.

www.farmers-mart.co.uk Apr/May 2016 19