THOUSANDS of people flocked to the annual Wolsingham & Wear Valley Agricultural Society’s Show this weekend.

Everything from traditional sheep dog trials to vintage tractors provided entertainment at the Agricultural Day at Scotch Isle Park, yesterday (September 5).

Today, the Country Fair Day was even busier with features including show jumping, line dancing and a live stunt team among those set to entertain the crowds.

Several tents showcasing homemade baking, arts and crafts, and smaller animals such as rabbits were also available.

The Ladies’ Marquee, which featured dozens of stalls featuring knitted good, jewellery and crafts was also full as the ladies’ committee prepare to celebrate its 50th year in October.

Organisers of the 236th show, making it England’s oldest, said they have been really pleased with the support and turn out and will soon be planning next year’s event.

Show secretary, David Richardson, said: “We have never had as many trade stands and entrants since we moved to the new field about ten years ago.”

Mr Richardson said more than 100 vintage cars had been entered for the first time this year while there had also been an increase in agricultural machinery with 1,500 entrants.

Meanwhile, a new food hall with more than 30 stands featuring local produce including pies, cakes and cheeses and breads gave visitors plenty of food for thought.

Other highlights included a zip wire, which the show’s chairman, John Emerson, tried out on Saturday, as well as an Alpaca clipping demonstration and a parrot show.

Talking about the show, Mr Richardson, said: “I’m over the moon. We do it for a full year and the second it’s finished we are looking at how we can improve it.”

“We have definitely had an improvement on last year after a few years of poor weather and just breaking even.”

He added: “The standards go up every year, there’s no doubt about that.”

Mr Richardson, who also runs the fur and feather tent, praised all the volunteers and members who had helped over the weekend and encouraged more people to get involved.

“We have got a lot of people on the gates for four hour spells – we could not do it without them.”

He added: “We have had very positive feedback off people so far and obviously the weather has really helped – it’s our biggest advert.”