THE rain held off on Saturday as Gargrave Agricultural and Horticultural Society held its 101st annual show.

This year's event was blessed with warm weather and although attendance was down on last year, it still attracted around 2,000 visitors.

The fall in numbers was blamed on rumours that the show had been abandoned due to the recent poor weather.

There was a short shower just after the fell race, but the sun was quick to come out again.

Veronica Sharp, who has exhibited at Gargrave Show for 50 years, was this year's president.

She said: "I was thrilled when I was asked to do it and I have loved every minute of it."

Show secretary Sarah Clay added: "It has been absolutely super. It is a lovely day and has been very friendly, everyone has enjoyed it. I think the weather has just put people off. The rain yesterday made people doubt whether there was a show. Rumours got around that it had been cancelled but of course we had not cancelled it."

The cattle championship was won by Robert and Elaine Butterfield, of Linghaw Farm, Bentham, with their home-bred Holstein Friesian second calver, Ingleview Charles Jane.

The couple collected a plethora of prizes including the silver cup for best group of dairy cattle, the George Thompson memorial trophy for the most points in the cattle classes and the Hesper Cup for the best animal in the Holstein Friesian section.

The champion sheep was a British Charollais shown by Kenton Foster, of Leyburn.