Are County Shows Making a Comeback

In my opinion, they absolutely are.

Just a few years ago, the county show circuit seemed to be in serious decline, especially some of the smaller shows, where entries were sparse and enthusiasm was dwindling. One of our local events, the West Mid Show (now rebranded as the Shropshire County Show), even stopped running horse classes entirely for a while. But recently, there's been a noticeable shift.

The Shropshire County Show has brought back its horse section. Other shows are also seeing impressive entry numbers. For example, when I attended the Norfolk Show, I was struck by how many competitors there were for a week day term time show. I’m not sure if places like Malvern experienced the same dip in participation, but in the North West, many shows definitely struggled for a time.

Now, though, the schedules are looking fantastic. They're packed with quality classes, including qualifiers for top level events such as the London International Horse Show and the Royal International, as well as for more niche ones such as the Senior Showing and Dressage League. It's really encouraging,

It’s also great to see a strong presence of unaffiliated events, gymkhanas, local show jumping, and more. Even affiliated show jumping seems to be growing in strength and popularity at many of these shows. Could we be heading back to the golden days of the 70s?

All in all, it’s wonderful to witness this resurgence. There’s a real buzz again and it’s a joy to see these shows returning to their former glory.