News
TRH attend the 148th Great Yorkshire Show
13th July 2006
The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visited the largest agricultural show in Northern England today.
When they arrived at the 148th Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate Their Royal Highnesses were met by representatives of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society and organisers.
They smiled and waved to hundreds of people in the cheering crowds as six-year-old Lucy Roebuck, of Scarcroft, Leeds, presented The Duchess with a posy of white Yorkshire roses.
Earlier, The Prince and The Duchess spent around an hour sampling local produce in the show's food hall.
Elizabeth Guy, of Wensleydale Foods, had told her she enjoyed visiting food halls as it gave her the chance to sample some of the local produce.
During their tour of the show, The Prince carried a shepherd's crook which had been presented by William and Claire Lambert, of Hawes, near Wensleydale.
They were the first farmers in the area to have their stocks slaughtered in the 2001 foot and mouth crisis.
Whilst visiting the flower show The Prince, who wore a white rose on his lapel signifying the county of Yorkshire, met David Wilce, show manager for the Yorkshire Rosarians.
Mr Wilce said of The Prince: “He was extremely pleasant and very knowledgeable about the roses.”
The Prince also asked stallholder Dave Parkinson for advice on how to look after his own orchids.
“I told him not to water them too much,” he said.
The Prince and The Duchess then met lamb producers as they toured the sheep, pig and cattle lines and posed for photographs with a three-and-a-half-year-old Ayrshire cow owned by Eric and Blaise Tomlinson, of Sandyford Farm, Rochdale.
The Prince also presented the John Mason Memorial Bronze for the best pig to Nina 6 and her owner Brian Mulkeen of Wigan.
Mr Mulkeen said he was very impressed with The Prince and enjoyed talking to him.
He said: “He just makes you feel really relaxed. I was anxious about meeting him but I really enjoyed it.”
The Prince and The Duchess then entered the showground's pavilion where they enjoyed lunch.
Later, The Prince visited the Royal Hall in Harrogate where an £8 million project is under way to restore the Grade II-listed building.
Actor Edward Fox, Honorary President of the Royal Hall Restoration Trust, said he was greatly honoured that The Prince had agreed to become patron of the trust and had made a “very generous donation”.
Mr Fox said: “I think it's absolutely fabulous. The Prince has been wonderful and I know he has taken a great interest in the hall.”
The Prince toured the work inside the hall and told more than 50 invited guests that he was anxious about taking to the stage “in the presence of one of this country's most eminent actors, who I have greatly admired ever since I was young”.
The Prince said: “I really am so pleased just to have this brief opportunity to see what I think is a truly remarkable building at first hand and at this critical point in its life history.”
He said the hall was an important part of both local and national heritage.
“This building has been saved for this and future generations,” he said.
“We have to look to the future and obviously the core restoration project may have saved the hall but what we now need to do is restore the whole place to the splendour of Frank Matcham's original design.”
The Prince said he had been “virtually brought up” on Harrogate toffee and added he had now “done my best to put my money where my mouth used to be”.
Meanwhile, The Duchess visited the newly-restored stable block which forms part of Newby Hall in Ripon, which incorporates many of the building's original features.