SHOWING OFF
PHOTO ESSAY: Gerry McCann
ONCE the highlight of the rural calendar, both socially and for business, agricultural shows have been a mainstay of Scotland’s country communities across three centuries.
Most were set up at a time when there were many more people working on the land. Almost every farm had a number of workers on the payroll. Numerous related businesses, from blacksmiths and butchers to saddlers and suppliers reliant on the farm industry could be found in every village.
Now, when many farms have grown bigger and machinery has replaced people as the dominant work force, the annual shows remain the highlight of the year for many communities and are even more popular than ever.
F
ROM the Haddington Show in North Berwick, which was launched in 1804, to Turriff in Aberdeenshire, which started in 1864, tens of thousands of people flock to these and many others across the country each year to take part in a celebration of rural life.
Townies, whose only experience with a farm animal or cereal crop is what they find on their breakfast plate, mix happily and easily with dedicated sons, and daughters, of the soil. Photographer Gerry McCann went along to this year’s Black Isle show to record the festivities at one of the country’s oldest celebrations of rural life, having been founded in 1836 with the intention of promoting the interest of agriculture to as wide an audience as possible.
“Te Black Isle Show has been a major event in the Highlands for more than 175 years and every year it seems to get bigger and attract more people,” said Gerry.
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