Animals come to town (From Bury Times)

Animals come to town

4:48pm Monday 3rd July 2006

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CREATURES great and small came together for the 63rd Bury Show.

Familiar farmyard favourites including sheep and cattle were there to delight visitors to the event at Burrs Country Park.

But the stars of the show were the exotic alpacas, small llama-like creatures from South America.

Thousands of people turned out for the annual event in glorious sunshine and later thunder storms to enjoy a whole host of attractions.

Lisa Day, secretary of the Bury Agricultural and District Society which puts on the event, said: "We had been so lucky with the weather and then in the afternoon is started raining, we couldn't believe it.

"Everything went ahead as planned although the horses and donkeys did not take part in the grand parade in the main arena, because of the weather.

"The show has been 12 months in the planning. It is a real community event."

Money raised from this year's show will go to MacMillan Cancer Relief.

Hundreds entered exhibits to the various classes being judged, which included arts and crafts, rural crafts, cattle, dog, donkey, horse, ferret and sheep. There were also the usual horse and pony displays and competitions.

Mike Sullivan, who was commentator on the main show ring, remembered attending as a youngster.

He said: "This is a celebration of Bury's agricultural history.

"Even though it is an industrial town it has always had links with agriculture."

Margaret Taylor from Heywood brought her two grandsons, William, aged eight, and Jonathan, aged six.

She said: "This is the second year we have come.

"It is so family orientated more show than the Lancashire Show and the Chester Show. It is much more user friendly than the bigger shows yet has the same attractions."

Barry Holleran brought along his seven-year-old granddaughter, Lucia Mincone.

Mr Holleran who lives in Elton, Bury has been coming to the show ever since he was a little boy.

He said: "My family used to show horses. The show is as good as it has ever been.

"The people who have organised this deserve so much praise because they all give up their time to do it.

"For a one-day show, it has exactly the same things as the bigger shows."

Lucia said: "The horses are my favourite, I would love to be a horse rider when I am older."

As well as the animals, people flocked to have their fortune told, pick up a bargain or two from the stalls, together with enjoying some real Lancashire delicacies.

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