The Royal Bath and West is an agricultural show for the West of England. Held every year at its permanent show ground near Shepton Mallet, Somerset, it is one of a number of County shows in the United Kingdom and is a four-day show. In 2009 and 2010 it attracted over 155,000 people. [1]
The Royal Bath and West Show is organised and run by the Royal Bath and West of England Society. It was founded in 1777 in Bath by a group of philanthropists led by Edmund Rack, [2] and is now a registered charity organisation (1039397). [3] The Society was formed with the aims of encouraging agriculture, arts, manufacture and commerce.
The annual show was initiated at Taunton in 1852 and was originally peripatetic. It was held on Durdham Down in Bristol in 1886 and again in 1921. [4] Latterly it was held in Bath in 1912 and 1927. [5] Exeter's Whipton Barton Exhibition Fields hosted the show in 1909 [6] [7] and 1954. [8]
The Royal Bath & West Show aims to celebrate all aspects of farming and rural life, from the best of British livestock to the latest technological innovations in the farming industry. The show offers shopping, food halls, floral marquee, rural crafts, country pursuits, dog show, equestrian competitions and arena displays. The show also attracts over 1,000 trade stands.
It is set in a 240 acres (97 ha) permanent showground, with a 3 acres (1.2 ha) show ring with a 1,200-seater grandstand and complete with its own steam model railway, a canoeing lake and a professional 4x4 off-road track.
Every year a member of the Royal Family visits the show. In 2008, Princess Anne visited the show, and in 2009 the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall both attended; the Prince of Wales had last visited the show in 1991. In 2010, the Countess of Wessex become the new Vice Patron of the Royal Bath and West Society. The Queen Mother and Queen Elizabeth II have also visited the show in past years.
The 2009 Royal Bath & West Show was held from Wednesday 27 May to Saturday 30 May. Mortimer’s Farm won Supreme Champion Beef Animal with their Charolais bull ‘Mortimer’s Eurovision’. [9] The Imagineering Fair won the Gold Medal for the best feature in Show with its display of aircraft and vehicles celebrating the 100 Years of Naval Aviation. [10] The Smelliest Cheese competition was won by Charles Martell, the maker of the Stinking Bishop. [11] The Champion Cheese in the Dairy Produce section, which was a block of Davidstow Cheddar made by Dairy Crest, was brought by R H Longman for £1000. [12]
The Cannon Ball Man, the Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas and the French ornithologist Christian Moullec with his geese, were all features of the show. [12]
The 2010 Royal Bath and West show took place from 2 to 5 June. Over 155,000 visitors attended, highlights included the Red Devils Parachute Display team and skilled displays from the Avon & Somerset Mounted and Dog Handling Sections. Over 2,400 Pigs, Sheep, Goats and Cattle and 2,000 horses were in competition. For the first time ever a Ladies Day took place on Friday 4 June.
Bath is a city in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary area in the county of Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman-built baths. In 2022, the population was 108,326. Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, 97 miles (156 km) west of London and 11 miles (18 km) southeast of Bristol. The city became a World Heritage Site in 1987, and was later added to the transnational World Heritage Site known as the "Great Spa Towns of Europe" in 2021. Bath is also the largest city and settlement in Somerset.
Somerset is a county in South West England which borders Gloucestershire and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east and Devon to the south-west. It is bounded to the north and west by the Severn Estuary and the Bristol Channel, its coastline facing southeastern Wales. Its traditional border with Gloucestershire is the River Avon. Somerset is currently formed of six council areas, of which two are unitary authorities, until the four second-tier district councils are merged on 1 April 2023, after which the county will comprise three unitary authorities. Its county town is Taunton.
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall, Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and large towns in the region include Bath, Bristol, Bournemouth, Cheltenham, Exeter, Gloucester, Plymouth and Swindon. It is geographically the largest of the nine regions of England covering 9,200 square miles (23,800 km2), but the third-least populous, with approximately five million residents.
Avon was a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England that existed between 1974 and 1996. The county was named after the River Avon, which flows through the area. It was formed from the county boroughs of Bristol and Bath, together with parts of the administrative counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset.
Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES) is a unitary authority district in England. Bath and North East Somerset Council was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the county of Avon. It is part of the ceremonial county of Somerset.
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The Royal United Hospital (RUH) is a major acute-care hospital in the Weston suburb of Bath, England, which lies approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of the city centre. The hospital has 565 beds and occupies a 52 acres (21 ha) site. It is the area's major accident and emergency hospital, with a helicopter landing point on the adjacent Lansdown Cricket Club field. The hospital is operated by the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust.
The Royal Bath and West of England Society is a charitable society founded in 1777 to promote and improve agriculture and related activities around the West Country of England. Based at the Royal Bath and West of England Society Showground near Shepton Mallet in Somerset, the society is a registered charity in England and Wales.
The 43rd Infantry Brigade was a brigade of the British Army during the First and Second World Wars, and later, as 43 (Wessex) Brigade, a regional headquarters from 1985 to 2014.
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Somerset is a county in the south west of England. It is a rural county and transport infrastructure has been significant in industrial development. There is some heavy industry particularly related to the defence technologies and the county has several centres for stone quarrying, although the coalfield is now closed.
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The South West Rugby League (SWRL) also known as the South West Men's League, is a rugby league competition for teams in the South West of England. It was formerly part of the Rugby League Conference.
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