
61st Brompton Regis Show
A bright and sunny morning got the 61st Brompton Regis Show and Gymkhana off to a good start on Saturday 16th August and set the scene for a thoroughly enjoyable day and another successful event. Spurred on by a forecast of fine weather, attendance was high with spectators and competitors coming from far and wide. Many were regular attenders, the appeal of the show continuing to be its traditional nature and friendly family atmosphere.
The ever popular Horse Show and Gymkhana saw a high level of competition across 35 classes. In the show jumping classes, the well built and inviting show jumping course created by Jo Fuller in Ring 1 was well received. Five classes started from 2′ through to the 3′ Open, which was won by Shelby Lunt on Minty. Showing classes were well supported including the Mountain and Moorland section in the afternoon, which saw a particularly strong contention of ponies come up in front of the judge. The overall winner for these classes was William Chatford with Lucky.
The afternoon Fancy Dress class was a joy to watch with no less than eleven entrants. But there was no clowning around for the Tomlinson family as their ‘Circus’ costumes took first prize. The gymkhana saw three sections of riders from lead-reins, under 12’s and open contest their section. The crowd gave great support as medals, rosettes and haribos were up for grabs!
The Companion Dog Show continues to go from strength to strength with over 170 entries this year, a record number. The four pedigree classes were fiercely competitive with Carol Cottle and her Border Collie, Callum, winning best in show. The family fun classes provided some great entertainment and were much enjoyed by participants and spectators alike.
The Cookery, Flower, Handicraft, Vegetable and Egg Shows proved popular with Kevin Steer winning the cup for being the competitor with the most points over the five shows. It was encouraging to see such a large number of entries in the children’s cookery classes with Lucinda Payne winning both challenge cups in this section. In the open classes Joan Hutchings’ shortbread was judged the best individual exhibit.
Despite worries over what flowers would still be out, the Flower Show exhibits looked a picture. The cup for the best flower exhibit went to Mrs R Thomas-Everard for her hydrangeas and the cup for the best flower arrangement to Pauli Joyce.
The standard of exhibits in the Vegetable Show was high and competition fierce. Kevin Steer won the cup for the best overall vegetable exhibit for his pair of cabbages and Aaron Steer won in the children’s section for his ‘mode of transport’ made from vegetables and fruit.
Entries in the Handicraft Show were wide ranging with Audrey Goldrick winning best exhibit for her moving poem about her father, a pilot who was shot down in the war. In the children’s section, Luke Fieldhouse won best exhibit for his beautifully constructed little owl nesting box.
The Egg Show was well subscribed with Mary Stacey winning best exhibit for her three hens eggs and Tom Ambler best exhibit in the children’s classes.
There were bargains to be had at the local produce, flower, white elephant and books stalls and a wonderful array of prizes for the Show Raffle and Auction of Pledges. Children had a great time too with lots to occupy them – a play area, games, face painting and a huge bouncy castle. A new attraction this year was a slack line, a low level tight rope, which proved popular for all ages.
The day ended with a grand auction of produce, wonderfully conducted by Edward Luxton as always.
The purpose of the show is to provide a good day out for the local community and visitors but also to raise funds for local good causes. The overall financial picture is not yet clear, but Bill Rees, our Treasurer, says that at this stage he is ‘cautiously optimistic’ for a good result.
Last but not least, in my first year as Show Secretary I must put on record my grateful thanks to all of you who helped and supported the show in so many ways. Special thanks must go to Keith Routledge for all his help and endless patience in helping me get on my feet and also to committee members who each did a huge amount of work and made my job a lot easier. All in all, over 100 people were involved in one way or the other which for a small village like this is simply amazing and a reflection on what a remarkable and special village this is.
Thank you
Sarah Merchant – Show Secretary