Billed as the greatest show on earth, the 169th Royal Highland Show gets underway today at the Royal Highland Centre just outside Edinburgh. With around 160,000 visitors expected, it’s certainly one of the biggest public events in the Scottish calendar. For farming folk, it’s much more than that. Imagine T in the Park, a Taste of Edinburgh and several Christmases all rolled together and you’ll get an inkling of just how much it means to the people who farm our food.
The show features one of Britain’s biggest livestock gatherings but it’s not all about the coos and the cuddies. Sporran-making, drystane diking and terrier racing are among the more esoteric attractions.
The Food Hall and Cookery Theatre are a big part of the show. There are over a hundred exhibitors at the event selling everything from hog rolls to seafood. In the Cookery Theatre, fifteen of Scotland’s top pan rattlers will be sharpening their knives and demoing recipes. Among the fifteen are 5pm members Jacqueline O’Donnell of The Sisters and Craig Dunn, executive head chef of Michael Caines @ Abode.
The event runs until Sunday. Adult tickets cost £22, accompanied children under sixteen go free.
Pic from Wikipedia