Gt. Eccleston Show All Set to Go

The show field at Great Eccleston is all set for the two-day Agricultural Show on Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th July 2009.

Staged in the heartland of the Fylde in Lancashire, with some four thousand exhibits in more than 500 classes, this show attracts 30,000 - 40,000 visitors over the two days. This year’s show promises to have ‘something for everyone’- townsfolk and country dwellers alike.

On Saturday the focus is on dairy cattle, heavy horses, sheep and poultry. The Fylde area is home to some of the top breeders of dairy cattle and Shire horses, so the animals on display will be some of England’s finest. Alongside hens in the poultry section, pigeons and budgies will be preening their feathers too.

On Sunday the focus shifts to beef cattle, light horses, goats and the rare sheep breeds.
The beefy bulls provide a particularly impressive spectacle.

Light horses will be showing their paces both days, finishing with an appearance by the Vale of Lune Hunt and a Show Jumping competition in the main ring on Sunday. The pig section always attracts a crowd for the ‘One Man and his Pig’ competition.

Tractors feature prominently at Great Eccleston Show and this year there will be tractors galore. Modern tractors, great and small, are displayed on the seriously agricultural trade stands. In the lower field customised, dragster type, modified tractors will roar into life as they compete in the Tractor Pull, staged on the purpose-built track. This year there are so many of these monster type tractors entered, along with mini-modified power-pullers, and supercharged trucks, that the competition will span both days. And the parade of restored vintage tractors, including classic steam tractors, will be bigger than ever.

Great Eccleston is a showcase for the whole range of crafts and skills associated with the country … cooking, handicraft, horticulture and local arts. In the large Food Hall the emphasis is on local produce, with cooking demonstrations featuring dishes prepared from locally sourced ingredients by Margaret Anderson and Honeywell Meats. In the Ladies NFU marquee there will be a range of talks and demonstrations, including Radio Lancashire’s Bill Blackledge on gardening, Angela Whittle on Alpacas. All over the field will be demonstrations and displays, featuring the work of farmers, shepherds, horticulturilists and rural craftsmen.

This year the Lancashire Woodland Project is also featured, with foresters, tree surgeons, charcoal burners, wattle weavers, basket makers and woodworkers demonstrating their skills.

On Sunday there is championship Cumberland and Westmoreland Wrestling, and pets will be welcome to compete in the friendly ‘exemption’ dog show.

On Sunday afternoon the Xtreme Motorcycle Trial Team will provide thrills aplenty in the main ring.

Elsewhere on the field there’s a Victorian Funfair, complete with an authentic fairground organ, and stalls with everything from crafts and country clothing to walking sticks and wellies.

And if you need to relax in the midst of all the excitement, Pilling Silver Jubilee Band will be there on Sunday afternoon to provide the music.

With so much going on Great Eccleston Agricultural Show is indeed a show with ‘something for everyone’ - townsfolk and country dwellers alike.