It’s show week, and as we publish the Dorset County Show is officially counting down to an action-packed weekend of rural celebration on 7th and 8th of September. Get ready for fire jumping kids on motorbikes, one of the UK’s top team of Liberty horses, more alpacas than you can shake a stick at (don’t do that), giant pumpkins, the competition to find the waggiest tail in Dorset … This is by far Dorset’s biggest rural celebration.
Headlining the show are the Atkinson Action Horses, and Dorset County Show is excited to welcome, for his first ever appearance in Dorset, internationally renowned Ben Atkinson and his Liberty horses. Their phenomenal display is set to be a highlight, and not to be missed.
The IMPs Motorcycle Display team will also be revving up the crowds with their fire jumps, cross-over routines, and awe-inspiring pyramids. They’re an inner-city charity project which has transformed into a world-renowned motorcycle display team with a reputation for breathtaking stunts and disciplined teamwork
There’s plenty for the whole family (and kids go FREE!), with a feast of hands-on fun like Tomahawk Throwing and of course they can get up close and personal with thousands of animals. Stretching over 100 acres, visitors can browse more than 350 trade stalls, and once they’ve built up an appetite can dive into the largest ever food hall at the show. Pop up micro pubs will be dotted around the site so that tired bodies can relax and kick back up on the hill with its festival vibe.
The 2024 Dorset County Show will see the very best of the region’s cows, pigs, sheep and goats competing. There’ll be the exciting sheep shearing, giant pumpkins (weighing more than 1,000lbs!), falconry displays, the mounted Pony Club games, dog agility, steam engines, showjumping and a live blacksmith’s forge. Watch the artisans in Crafters Avenue, see prize-winning dahlias and don’t forget to pause at the Heavy Horse Village to pet everyone’s favourite gentle giants
Sampling the delights …
With a full programme of demonstrations, stalls and displays, this is a major event for the agricultural sector and a joyful end-of-harvest celebration for the whole county.
‘It’s been amazing seeing the showground come to life over the last few weeks,’ says James Cox, the Dorset County Show organiser. ‘It’s a cliché, but it really is such a massive team effort, and everyone is working incredibly hard to put on what we’re confident will be the best show yet. Personally I can’t wait to see the Atkinson Action Horses. I’m also still a farmer at heart, so I’m a sucker for the vintage tractor displays. And I always manage to get away for a quick stroll through the Food Hall, sampling as I go…’
dorsetcountyshow.co.uk
