Historic Garstang Show returns this weekend with circus, livestock and local food
The 200-year-old event returns to the Garstang Showfield on Saturday with entertainment, animals, vintage machinery and an artisan food hall as part of a packed day of attractions.
Garstang Agricultural Show opens its gates this Saturday (Aug 1) after months of preparation, with organisers expecting around 15,000 visitors to descend on the Garstang Showfield for a day celebrating the region's farming and rural heritage.
Running from 8.30am to 5pm, the event, rganised by the Garstang and District Agricultural and Horticultural Society, will feature Astral Circus big top entertainment, livestock displays, vintage machinery, fairground rides and a programme of activities in the Main Ring.
The show comes as the latest in a busy summer calendar for Garstang, following the Children's Festival, Family Fun Day and Scarecow Festival.
Visitors will be able to browse the artisan food hall, support local traders at craft and trade stands, and view floral displays and handmade crafts in the Horticulture Marquee. A packed timetable of livestock classes will run throughout the day.
Organisers are urging people to book tickets online in advance, as entry on the day cannot be guaranteed.
Speaking ahead of the event, the society said: "Garstang Show always has and always will be about community. What may seem to many as just another event is, in reality, a way to bring the local community together to learn about, enjoy and celebrate the role farming, food and the countryside play in all our lives. Watch the action in the Main Ring, shop for delicious local produce in the Food Hall and see beautiful floral displays and handmade crafts in the Horticulture Marquee. Immerse yourself in agriculture with a packed timetable of livestock classes and trade stands showcasing the best of our local businesses."
Two centuries of heritage
The Garstang and District Agricultural Society was founded in 1809 following a meeting called by local landowner Alex Butler to establish an organisation supporting agriculture in the area. The Society staged its first show in 1813 with a modest programme of crop and livestock competitions, with the Royal Oak in Garstang becoming closely associated with early events.
The show declined in the 1840s due to competition from neighbouring agricultural events, but was revived and transformed in 1885 when the Society merged with the Garstang Dog and Poultry Association. The newly formed organisation expanded across surrounding villages and grew into one of Lancashire's best known rural events.
Over the following century, the show evolved alongside the region's farming industry, introducing horticulture, goats, trade stands and agricultural machinery. It relocated to its current, larger site in 1938 to accommodate growing crowds and exhibits, and has continued to celebrate the county's agricultural heritage for more than 200 years, remaining one of Lancashire's longest running community events.