Countdown to The Great Yorkshire Show 2017 begins
The very best of agriculture and farming will meet fashion and celebrity at this year’s Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate.
With just three weeks to go, organisers are gearing up for a jam-packed three day show which will see a host of special guests and new events.
Agriculture remains firmly at the heart of the show, and this year, as well as the thousands of cattle, sheep, pigs, pigeons and ponies, the Charolais Cattle Society is holding its Summer National Show with around 75 cattle expected.
The Ford and Fordson Association is celebrating the 100 year anniversary of tractor production with a display of tractors and machinery on the President’s Lawn. This includes early Fordson and Ford tractors spanning through to the current New Holland range supplied by Russells.
Atkinson Action Horses from East Yorkshire whose TV stunt horses have appeared in Poldark, Victoria and Peaky Blinders, will make their debut and perform stunts and tricks in the Main Ring every afternoon.
They will be among the first users of the newly revamped Collecting Ring, which has seen the Yorkshire Agricultural Society invest £70,000 to improve conditions under the direction of Olympic showjumping legend Graham Fletcher.
Also in the main ring, military parachute display team RAF Falcons, based at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, will jump from the skies in their Great Yorkshire Show debut on Tuesday at 12.35.
Over at the fashion pavilion, there’s everything from John Lewis to James Steward to fashion students to Brook Taverner who is behind Yorkshire Agricultural Society tweed jackets. For the first time ever, the fashion show will raise money for Yorkshire Cancer Centre in Leeds as a thank you for its support for a team member.
Tuesday will see famous faces from the world of sport and TV will take to the stage in a very special one-off fashion show at 2.30pm. There will be four fashion shows a day at 11am, 12.30pm, 2.30pm and 4pm.
There will be more famous guests across the showground including Rosemary Shrager who will cook up a storm in the Food Theatre and the VetSpec Game Cookery Theatre every day. BBC gardening expert Carol Klein will give talks in the Garden Show on Thursday.
There will be film crews at the show following the lives of some of the guests including the Yorkshire Vets who are filming a Great Yorkshire Show special with Julian Norton and Peter Wright. The public can meet their heroes at a special meet and greet stand at the entrance to the Home and Gift Hall and the hour-long Yorkshire Vet at the Great Yorkshire Show will be broadcast early October.
International shearers will go head to head in a thrilling England v New Zealand Sheep Shearing “Test Match” which will take place on Wednesday.
Visitors can take a virtual pig tour every daywith sisters Vicky Scott and Kate Moore who run a family pig farm in East Yorkshire.
Live milking will be happening once again at the Lely stand where visitors will see calves being trained to feed on an automated calf feeder.
Charles Mills, show director said: “We have such an exciting and eclectic mix of displays and demonstrations, seminars and shows, we can’t wait to welcome visitors again this year. Agriculture remains at the very heart of the Great Yorkshire Show and while we endeavour to showcase the very best of rural life, we try to do this in an interesting, fun and memorable way. We look forward to seeing you in three weeks’ time.”
This will be the 159th Great Yorkshire Show, held on Tuesday 11 – Thursday 13 July.
