The Royal Show - Media & PR - Press Releases

July 2nd 2009

End of an Era as Gates Open for the Last Royal Show

As the gates open at the Royal Show on Tuesday 7 July, and the expected 100,000 visitors arrive at Stoneleigh Park, they will be taking part in a piece of British rural history. As well as being the 160th Royal Show, it will be last ever.  Despite this organiser RASE (Royal Agricultural Society of England) believes that this will be the biggest and best Show of recent years.
 
Denis Chamberlain RASE Marketing Director said: “There will be a really special buzz around the showground, because this is the last show.  Exhibitors are travelling from across the country and beyond to vie for a chance to take home a piece of history – and win one of the last prestigious ‘Royal’ rosettes.  We are determined to give everyone a great show”.
 
The first Show, recognised for many years as the flagship event for British farming, was first held in 1839 in Oxford, followed by Liverpool and Manchester.  With a history spanning 170 years, the Royal Show has taken place each year since, with the exception of the World Wars, and when there was cattle plague and Foot and Mouth Disease.   Over the years, it has provided the ideal setting and opportunity for visitors to connect with farming and the countryside, to ask questions, and find out more about food, farming and the environment. 
 
In 1963 Stoneleigh Park hosted its first Royal Show, when 111,916 visitors passed through the gate over the 4-day show.  In recent years the Royal has been blighted by bad weather, and in 2008, Bluetongue, which significantly reduced the numbers of livestock shown, and consequently visitors to the showground. 
 
The final Show will begin with a pageant paying tribute to its history, followed by an action-packed programme in the Grand Ring, cookery and craft demonstrations, countryside pursuits, an extended farmers’ market and food halls.  With more than 2,000 horses, the Show has earned its place on the equestrian calendar, and has many competitive classes including Horse of the Year Show Qualifiers. 
 
The ‘Good Life’ trend for self-sufficiency will be reflected at the Show, which will feature a booming smallholder section where visitors will be offered advice and practical demonstrations on beekeeping, milking goats, and even spinning the wool from alpacas – not to mention how to prepare a pig for slaughter or the artificial insemination of goats.  As part of RASE’s education remit, the Show will also welcome over 8,000 school children to learn more about food, farming and the countryside. 
 
Show organiser RASE is now looking to the future and focussing on a series of year round events for 2010 and beyond, to retain key elements of the ‘Royal’, many of which have become an annual tradition.   The RASE Festival of the Horse will debut in July 2010 and discussions with breed societies and livestock trade bodies about staging a livestock competition from 2010 are well underway.
 
For further information on the Royal Show or to book your tickets now visit www.royalshow.org.uk or call 0844 5811400.

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Notes for editor:
The Royal Show is organised by the Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE). RASE is an independent charity with over 6,000 members including the general public and the farming community. RASE works towards a sustainable, vibrant future for British Agriculture and the rural community. For more information about RASE, please contact: 02476 696969 or visit the website www.rase.org.uk