Lowther 2009
Lowther (Hound) Show 2009: Cancelled
Bad weather has forced organisers to cancel Britain’s biggest annual countryside show more than eight months before it was due to take place.
Every summer up to 50,000 spectators from all over the country attend the Lowther Horse Driving Trials and Country Fair, in Cumbria, whose patron is the Duke of Edinburgh.
Hunting plays a big part in the Lowther Show, not least the popular six rings Hound Show on the Saturday which attracts hound packs from all over Britain. There are also hunting parades in the main arena which are hugely supported.
Lowther Hounds Parade 2008
But the 2009 event – also known as the Lowther Show - has already been called off after persistent rain swamped the showground near Penrith in recent months, making it impossible for the grade two listed parkland to host it next August.
Met Office figures show that almost a yard of rain has fallen locally in the last four complete months from July to October inclusive, with some monthly totals being almost double the average.
The wet weather had forced the final day of the three-day show to be cancelled last August, the first time this had ever happened since it was first staged on the Lowther Estate in 1973.
But show director Robert Benson said the continued rain had not given staff any chance to repair and reseed the heavily rutted ground or start preparing it for next year.
Looking out across it, Robert said: “In some parts it is still like the Somme. To hold a show in 2009 would have potentially been lethal if the weather had gone against us again. That could have killed us off.
(l-r) Percy huntsman Robert McCarthy and Hurworth huntsman Joe Townsend
“We have all got to accept that weather patterns have changed. There are much bigger rain peaks now – and much more of it , along with bigger and heavier vehicles arriving on the showground.”
The show is run by a charitable organisation and has 400 trade stands, including a giant food hall, and a main showground arena. It also features carriage driving, which Prince Phillip has competed in almost every year until his retirement after the 2006 event when he became the Show Patron .
Robert added: “The decision to cancel has not been taken lightly. I am very conscious of the knock-on effect it will have on the local economy. We have tried to find an alternative site without success and we have got to take a year out to allow the showground time to recover. Our intention is to be back in August 2010 (6th - 8th August ) and running an annual show thereafter.”