Summer shows at Birstwith and Newby Hall this weekendFun for all ages as Birstwith Show returns this weekend

Children’s entertainment will take centre stage as an annual village show returns to Nidderdale this weekend.

Birstwith Show takes place on Saturday, July 29 and has introduced a number of new features this year after asking for feedback from the community.

Show committee member Amy Howard said:

“People felt there was a gap for teenagers and a gap for toddlers, so we’ve got a toddler tent this year with hay bales and toys.

“We’ve got two sessions with Hazel, who does singing and signing for toddlers. Parents can have a sit down and it’s near the play area too, so they can keep an eye on their older children at the same time.

“For teenagers, we’ve got a silent disco this year, so they can have a bit of fun and a bit of a chill. I’m sure there will be a few grown-ups in there as well!”

Also new this year will be a dog and duck display in the main ring, along with the usual popular mix of entertainment.

Children’s races, a tug-o-war, a dog show with Miss Mollies Rescue, and live music through the day and into the evening are also on the programme.

Another new feature will be food demonstrations, including two by the Little Yorkshire Scone company. As well as showing how to make savoury scones, the company will demonstrate recipes to use up leftovers.

Ms Howard said the schedule of classes has proved popular this year, with Birstwith Primary School and other village organisations getting involved. She added:

“Entries are up this year. We were a bit low last year and we think it’s just people getting back into the swing of shows post-covid.”

The tents and marquees are all in place thanks to the team of volunteers, and trade stands, food and drink stalls will be ready to welcome visitors from noon on Saturday.

Soldiers from the Army Foundation College will be on hand to help with parking and traffic management on the day.

Entry is £7.50 on the gate or £7 in advance via the website, until midnight on Friday.

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Village show season set to begin in the Harrogate district

As the summer continues, it can only mean one thing…village show season is due to begin.

From vintage tractors and giant tortoises to handwriting competitions and terrier racing, we’ve collated a list of village shows happening across the district this summer.

If you have something to add to the round-up, email us the details.

Weeton Show

Titled “The Greatest Little Show in Yorkshire”, Weeton Show offers locals a jam-packed day of guaranteed fun.

The village show will host a wealth of entertainment throughout the day, with food stalls, live brass bands, a Punch and Judy performance, farrier demonstrations and much more.

The day will also include over 200 classes of horses, sheep, dogs, produce and horticulture.

Weeton show has been an integral part of the village since 1947 and still promises to be fun for all the family.

The show will take place on Sunday, July 30.

Tickets start at £7 – more information can be found here.

Pic: Valeria Mather from Weeton Show website.

Birstwith Show

This year marks the 127th annual Birstwith Show and, after all these years, it still has lots on offer.

For any local horticulturists, the village show has an extensive list of classes to enter or enjoy, ranging from pansies and delphiniums to hydrangeas and hanging baskets.

The show will also showcase a variety of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Children can also get involved in classes and can show off their photography, baking, or even sock puppet-making skills.

Birstwith Show will take place on Saturday, July 29.

Find more information here – ticket prices begin at £7.

Pic: Sarah Jane Osler

Ripley Show

Ripley Show takes place in the grounds of the iconic Ripley Castle and, too, offers a day of agricultural fun.

The show offers a wide range of events and classes, including ferret racing, a companion dog show, children’s fancy dress, and much more.

This year’s attendees can also expect some updates to the schedule – from donkey classes to novice gardener classes.

Ripley Show will take place on Sunday, August 13.

Click here for more information – tickets start at £6.50.

Pic: Ripley Show Facebook page

Tockwith Show

Tockwith Show will also host a day of agricultural and horticultural excitement.

The village show – which was established in 1945 – will hold over 800 classes throughout the day.

Attendees can expect to see giant tortoises, trade stands, Farlavale gun dogs, farm animals and demonstrations.

There will also be pony club displays, a tractor parade, and a dog dash.

The show will take place on Sunday, August 6.

More information can be found here – tickets cost £10.

Pic: Tockwith Show Facebook page

Nidderdale Show

Nidderdale Show (affectionately known at Pateley Show) boats one of the finest exhibitions of animals in the UK.

The show will host a variety of animal competitions, show jumping, horticulture, crops, dry stone walling and more.

People can also enjoy a cricket match, funfair and live music.

There will be a two-course carvery lunch, as well as other hot meals, afternoon teas, sandwiches, and hot beverages available. There will also be mobile catering units and bars located around the showground.

Sunflowers Day Nursery will have staff on-hand to provide a relaxing family area for children (and parents) when necessary.

The show will take place on Sunday, September 24.

Find more information here – tickets cost £13.50.

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Birstwith and Weeton shows attract weekend crowds

Two of the Harrogate district’s premier village shows attracted sizeable crowds over the weekend.

Weeton Show drew its biggest attendance for 15 years on Sunday as early morning rain gave way to fine weather.

The event was one of the few country shows to defy covid last year and take place.

Here are some images from the day.

Weeton Show

Weeton Show

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Birstwith Show bounced back strongly with its first event in three years.

3SIXTY Bicycle Stunt Team (pictured below) were among the attractions at the Nidderdale event, which dates back to 1867.

Community prepares for return of Birstwith Show this weekend

Visitors are expected to flock to the show field in Birstwith tomorrow for the first annual village show in three years.

Last held in 2019, the show is already attracting more interest than in previous years, with advance ticket sales up and a flurry of late bookings for trade stands in recent weeks.

Andrea Walwyn, a member of the organising committee, told the Stray Ferret:

“It’s going really very well. It has been a difficult couple of years and we haven’t had a show since 2019.

“This year we’ve had a real influx of volunteers and I think one of the reasons is because there has been a lot of new houses in the village. I think those people haven’t lived in a village before and they’re really excited to be involved in village life.”

As well as the traditional attractions, there have been a number of changes to this year’s show, which begins at noon.

When the show princess parades into the ring, for the first time her attendants will be two boys instead of two girls.

The show ring will have displays including 3Sixty Stunt Team, Harrogate District Dance Company and Pete White’s Suitcase Circus, and entries will be welcome on the day for the dog classes.

And while there will be the usual array of classes for everything from children’s baking to crafts, there have been some new trends in the entries received.

Ms Walwyn said:

“We’ve had a lot of entries, particularly in cookery classes. The fruit and veg classes are down, probably because of the weather this year, but cookery classes are up.

“We only usually get three entries in the painting class and this year we have got about 20. We wondered if people during lockdowns have been painting and cooking more.

“It’s interesting how things have changed in terms of our exhibitions.”

Tickets for the event will be available on the gate at £5 per adult, while children go free. Following the daytime entertainment, three bands will provide live music in the marquee from 6.30pm.

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Meanwhile, Weeton Show also takes place this weekend, with the gates opening at 9am on Sunday.

Brass bands, vintage tractors, rural craft demonstrations and a bar featuring Daleside Brewery’s exclusive show ale Weeton Wiggle will all be on offer.

Tickets are only available in advance via the website and organisers have warned people to book early after last year’s show sold out. Entry is £10 for adult and £5 for children, with those under five going free.

Watch today’s Birstwith Pig Race

A wacky village tradition made its comeback today as part of Birstwith’s jubilee activities.

The Birstwith Pig Race was held at the Station Hotel after being cancelled for the two previous years due to covid.

Today’s event saw battery-powered pigs with silly names race to the finish line to raise funds for Birstwith Show, to be held on July 30, and Birstwith in Bloom.

For each race, people could pay £5 to sponsor the race and £3 to own and name one of six pigs. However a casualty during the first race left it to Mr Snout, Chunky Cheeks, Stinky Pig, Miss Piggy and Peppa Pig to fight for first place.

Eventually, Mr Snout claimed the medal.

Watch the action as it unfolds:

Organiser Amy Howard said:

“It’s a great fundraiser and great fun for all the family. We haven’t had one for a few years due to the pandemic so the pigs needed a bit of an MOT and a bit of a dust off!”

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No. 6: Prince Charles visits Harrogate’s Great Yorkshire Show

In this article, which is part of a series on the 15 stories in the Harrogate district that shaped 2021, we look at the return of the show in a year in which many smaller agricultural events in the district fell victim to covid again.

The Great Yorkshire Show in July signalled a brief return to some sort of normality after covid decimated another year of outdoor events.

The show was cancelled last year and the venue’s Yorkshire Event Centre was converted into a covid vaccination site in the early months of the year.

For a while, it seemed possible that Yorkshire’s flagship farming event might have to be cancelled for a second year running. But the Yorkshire Agricultural Society took the decision to hold it over four days so visitors could spread out ⁠— and the risk paid off.

Prince Charles at the show

The Stray Ferret attended all four sun-kissed days to watch award-winning goats, sample delicious local food and drink, and we were front row for a surprise royal visit when the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall attended.

The couple arrived at lunchtime on day three and were greeted by hundreds of visitors at the gate.

Prince Charles spent time inspecting sheep, while the Duchess of Cornwall visited the children’s discovery zone.

Both also took time out to speak with the many visitors and exhibitors, including Phil Airey from Harrogate gardening charity Horticap.

The Stray Ferret’s videos of the royal couple attending the event and leaving the Stray via helicopter went viral and received over 200,000 views on our Facebook page. You can view them on our YouTube page here and here.

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This year’s show also got a happy (and emotional) ending a week after it ended.

Farmer David Mitchell and his wife Annette drove 200 miles from East Ayrshire to be reunited with the intrepid Puss the Cat, who they feared was lost forever after she bolted from his trailer after sneaking in and hitching a ride to Harrogate.

Many shows cancelled

But although the Great Yorkshire Show went ahead, and will remain a four-day event in 2022, other agricultural shows weren’t as fortunate.

Nidderdale Show, which usually attracts about 15,000 people to Pateley Bridge in September, was cancelled.

So was Ripley Show, Birstwith Show and Tockwith Show, with organisers citing concerns over health, logistics and the extension of social distancing restrictions.

Masham Steam Engine and Fair Organ Rally called off its summer event, citing “too many uncertainties to proceed”.

But the unique Masham Sheep Fair went ahead in September.

Masham Sheep Fair

Masham Sheep Fair

There is no other event like it in the district. As well as sheep judging, it offered sheepdog trials, tours of the Theakston and Black Sheep breweries, Morris dancing, fleece stalls and even sheep racing to keep the crowds entertained.

Organiser Susan Cunliffe-Lister told the Stray Ferret she was determined to hold the fair this year despite uncertainty over covid.

Weeton Show also decided to proceed and was rewarded with a sell-out crowd and glorious sun.

Agricultural shows are a major part of the district’s summer life and many people will be hoping they return en masse in 2022.

Birstwith Show cancelled due to covid uncertainty

The organisers of Birstwith Show have cancelled this year’s event due to uncertainty over the lifting of lockdown restrictions.

The event, which has taken place most years since 1867, had been scheduled to return on July 31.

Traditionally held on the last Saturday in July, the village event attracts up to 2,000 people and is one of many country and agricultural shows in the Harrogate district.

However, organisers have now decided to cancel the show for the second year running due to concerns over health, logistics and the extension of social distancing restrictions.

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A post on the Birstwith Horticultural Society Events Facebook page, said the organisers would not be able to know if it would be legal to put on the show until a week beforehand.

It added:

“Our decision was based on several points, first and most importantly the health of the community and those who would be visiting the village. 

“There was also the logistics of what would be needed to be put in place to keep everyone safe. 

“And lastly we would have only one week notice from a government announcement whether we could go ahead or not. 

“This would not be fair to those supporting us, the acts, marquee, food and drink suppliers etc. It also normally takes a year to plan the event in normal times, with the ever changing rules and regulations one week would just not be possible.”

The show is the latest to be cancelled due to covid.

Both Tockwith Show and Ripley Show organisers cancelled the events earlier this year.

Masham Steam Engine and Fair Organ Rally has also postponed its event this year amid the uncertainty.

However, the Great Yorkshire Show announced yesterday it will go ahead next month.

The event had been in doubt following the government extending social distancing restrictions until July 19.

Weeton Show is also set to go-ahead as planned next month.

Paula Harper, chair of the show, said: 

“Weeton Show 2021 was planned from the outset under the restrictions in force at the time –  pre-purchase of tickets, masks when inside, social distancing, hand sanitisation and so on – and we continue to plan for a covid safe show.

“We are working closely with local authorities and for this year only the show will be scaled down, so that more of it will be held outdoors and certain competition sections will have fewer classes than usual.”

Birstwith Show set to return in July

The organisers of Birstwith Show have announced the event is to take place on July 31.

Birstwith has hosted a show most years since 1867 and today’s announcement is an early sign of some semblance of normality returning after yesterday’s government roadmap out of lockdown.

The event, which is traditionally held on the last Saturday of July, attracts up to 2,000 people.

It is one of numerous annual country and agricultural shows that are popular parts of Harrogate district life.

The news will raise hopes that similar events, in places such as Ripley and Pateley Bridge, will also happen this year after covid caused their cancellation last year.

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Amy Howard, a show committee member, told the Stray Ferret:

“We are excited about it and we hope it will give people a bit of a buzz. Everyone is desperate for something to look forward to. It’s a little glimmer of hope.

“To sit outside with friends and family listening to live music and seeing kids running around having fun is something people want to see happen again. They’ve missed the simple pleasures.”

Birstwith Show includes about 20 stalls providing food and drink and entertainment, plus displays of arts and crafts, homemade produce, flower arranging and horticulture.

Ms Howard said the committee usually started promoting the show around now to give people time to know what to grow for the horticultural exhibition.

The entry schedule is due to be released shortly on the show website.