THE third and final day of the Great Yorkshire show provided visitors with yet another sunny day of fun and activity.

The main ring included a packed programme of show-jumping, parading hounds, The Black Knight: Royal Artillery Parachute team and the popular Dancing Diggers.

In a separate part of the showground, the livestock classes focused on prize-winning cattle, sheep and goats.

Demonstrations also attracted the crowd, featuring the One Man And His Pig display team and sheep shearing experts.

Wednesday's attendance figure was recorded as the best for any one day in the show's history. More than 50,000 people attended and officials hope that the overall figure for the three days top last year's of 125,793.

"It's fabulous to see so many different groups of people enjoying this huge North Yorkshire event," said one local visitor. "In one area you see families enjoying ice creams and lying on the grass. Around the corner you see the county folk enjoying things like the hound shows and then nearby are the farmers and their livestock.

"The show draws together town and country and the atmosphere is great."

Donkey fans are youngest sponsors

Two sisters lived out their shared dream yesterday when they got close to a host of champion donkeys.

Now the youngsters are keeping their fingers crossed that a donkey of their own will be on the next present list.

Georgina and Harriet Maud from Ripon, North Yorkshire, became the youngest ever sponsors of a section of The Great Yorkshire Show.

Their prize was to present the awards to the best donkeys in the main arena in front of thousands of onlookers.

"It was very exciting. I really enjoyed being with all these lovely donkeys,"said nine-year-old Harriet, a pupil at Ripon Cathedral Choir School.

The girls' parents, Gina and Jonathan, decided to sponsor the donkey classes as a special treat for their daughters.

"In the past, the girls have adopted donkeys and last year they fell in love with them at the show," said Mrs Maud.

Both girls sponsor donkeys of their own through The Elisabeth Svendsen Trust for Children and Donkeys, in Leeds. But after spending yesterday at the show the girls want a one of their own.

"They are really sweet, gentle animals - I love them," said Georgina, 12, a pupil at Queen Mary's School, in Thirsk.

"I'm hoping we can get one of our won to keep our pony Tara company."

The girls presented two trophies to the winner and runner-up of the champion class, watched by their proud mother.

Carol Goodman, of Halifax, who was showing Owram Bonnie, was presented with the winning Champion Donkey trophy by the girls.