Osmotherley Show is a traditional affair with a bar and live music that keeps the party going into the night

“On show day you just look around and everybody on the committee and everyone who helps or exhibits is here and getting on with their part of the show,” says Susie, who has been show secretary for the past 17 years and farms at Foxton Farm, Kirby Sigston with partner Howard Kitching where they have cattle and sheep.

“It’s just amazing how it all comes together. Everyone is here. It’s such an idyllic setting and when we have people who have not been before, they always comment on just how much they enjoy the setting and the friendliness of everyone, and it encourages them to keep coming back.

“We attract somewhere between 2000 to 3000 and we just try and keep the show going right the way through to the night by keeping the bar open and having a bit of live music. We used to have a show dance but that was really hard to organise, so now we just chill out, have a few drinks and celebrate another good show.

Cattle, sheep and horses of all description, including heavy horses, provide the major agricultural and countryside classes but Osmotherley is also one of the first where this year’s cereal crops are also shown, due to harvest being either just under way or nearly ready, with classes for this year’s wheat, barley and oats among other farm produce.

“We do pretty well in all our classes for a small show,” says Susie. “Our cattle entries usually run to about 30 or 40. We’ve introduced a dairy bred calves class, in addition to our native breeds, commercial and continental classes, and that’s really taken off.

“We’ve quite a few more sheep entries this year, up quite a bit on our usual numbers, so there will be plenty to see in the Mashams, Mules, Swaledales, continental and native breeds, commercial crosses and butchers’ lambs.

“We’ve also so much going on in the equine section, not just show jumping and heavy horses but a lot of other sections including the retraining of racehorses classes, plus we have the sheepdog trials and a fell race, which we have been running for the past ten years has become really popular. It is run on land that would not normally be accessible to runners. The gun dog scurry is another really well-liked event.

“We don’t spend money on main ring attractions because we can’t afford to and also because that’s not what Osmotherley Show is all about. We try to keep it as a good traditional small, local, family show that lots of people like coming to without the need for something more. Everyone likes it for what it is.

Susie says she took on her role of secretary after helping the previous incumbent Jillian Lowther.

“I’d helped Jillian Lowther for a year. Jillian had looked after the show for a lot of years and had asked my mum if I would help. The next month, after that first show where I’d helped, the chairman at the time John Tate came into the mart at Northallerton where I worked and asked if I would take it on.

“Little did I know just how much work would be involved and, like many others who take on the show secretary’s job for other shows, maybe if I knew everything I know now I’m not so sure I would have taken it on.

“You really don’t realise all the bits you don’t know about until you’re the one having to deal with it all, but it all came right and at least Osmotherley Show is still here and going strong thanks to all of the committee and everyone else who plays their part.

“Our show chairman is Nick Clemmit who manufactures gates under his company name Timber Gates in Over Silton. Nick has been chairman for a while.

“This year’s show presidents are long standing show committee members Derek and Sally Brass who have now retired from farming but farmed at Thimbleby.

Susie says that Osmotherley Show is extremely grateful to the Shelley family for their hosting of the show for so many years.

“Mr and Mrs Shelley have Thimbleby Estate where they have suckler cows and sheep and also run their own clay shooting ground and we have a clay shoot there too, to raise funds for the show each year. The estate’s farm manager Steve Flintoft and gamekeeper David Dickinson do a great job in helping with putting on of Osmotherley Show and are both joint vice chairmen.

Susie’s originally from the nearby village of East Harlsey and took on Foxton Farm from her uncle, her sister Carol farms at their father’s farm.

“Carol helps me a lot with organising the show,” says Susie. “I have never taken part in the cattle or sheep classes myself. Howard and I are more a commercial farm, so I’ve never shown in the livestock section, but I used to compete in the children’s classes when I was younger and I won the cup for most points in the children’s classes. You had to win it three years in a row to get your name on the cup and I managed that through entering classes like miniature gardens, writing and wild grasses.

“It’s great to see so many entries from children in those same classes today.