Editor’s Pick of the Week: All the fun at the Great Yorkshire Show, but no fun for England

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Much like 37,500 other people on Tuesday, I took a trip to the Great Yorkshire Show to cover the grand opening of the 167th edition of the annual event.

This year’s show was full of the usual judging competitions, political visits and celebration of all things agriculture.

But, for this journalist, it was also a day to break my daily step record as I walked the length and breadth of the Yorkshire showground site more times than I care to recall.

You can catch up on who I spoke to and the various pictures of politicians, animals and general fun at the show that I took here. What the blog will not do though is capture how I felt walking past the Theakston’s Brewery bar at 2pm in the afternoon in 25 degrees heat, knowing that there was still at least two and half hours of the working day left.

While those at the Great Yorkshire Show were busy celebrating, England football fans were doing quite the opposite.

Two goals in seven minutes saw the national team crash out of the World Cup on Wednesday night, much to the heartbreak of the 24 million watching on the BBC.

These events are, inevitably, followed by much soul searching, criticism of the players or coaching staff and the wallowing self-pity which comes with another major tournament passing by with nothing to show for it.

However, one Harrogate bar opted in the aftermath of the defeat to make something good of England's woes.

Paradise Tap & Taco, off Cheltenham Road, had not showed any of the World Cup matches, but owners Ellie and Josh Molloy were very aware of one of the tournament’s lesser known – and sadder – trends.

Research in 2013 showed that cases of domestic abuse increased by 38% when England lost a match, and by 26% when they won or drew. Even though that data is more than a decade old, women’s aid charities say there are no signs the situation has changed for the better.

With this in mind, Josh and Ellie took to Instagram following England’s 2-1 loss to Argentina, to announce that they would make a donation to Refuge from what takings they had on the night. 

John Plummer is away.