There is something very wholesome about the Suffolk Show.  It’s one of the UK’s biggest county shows and it encompasses much that we hold dear in British life.  Like its counterparts elsewhere in the country, there’s plenty on offer for exhibitors and visitors, such as numerous classes for farm animals, equines, plants, machines, skills and crafts.  There are breath taking main ring attractions and lots of traders selling their wares in the stands, ranging from enormous equipment to tiny handmade dainties.

Suffolk Show has all the above in spades, but there’s an extra layer of warmth and welcome, and the organisers exude confidence in their product which seamlessly embraces the traditions, the present and the future. The show also famously values its volunteers and stewards.  Being a steward at Suffolk Show is a badge of honour and a role that is carried out with pride.

Another positive factor is the priority given to agriculture in the area, and the how the farmers and related businesses mingle and promote their county and its produce.  At the officials’ dinner next to the grand ring the evening before the show opens, all the food and drink come from Suffolk.  Over the two days, the breeds of animals and varieties of crops that originate from East Anglia are showcased, alongside many other attractions.

I’ve been commentating on the driving and coaching classes at Suffolk for nearly 30 years, only missing one year for family reasons, and it’s an event I always look forward to.  Some of those young stewards I met in the early days now have grey hair and families of grown-up children who in turn have become stewards.

COACHING & MULTIPLES DISPLAY

For many years, there was a conventional Coaching Marathon collated by Richard James.  He introduced the ‘Cock Horse’ class on the second day of the show which was fun and gave the appreciative crowds something else to enjoy.  But the entries began to dwindle so a new initiative was taken.  Liz Jarman came on board as the co-organiser and a non-competitive coaching and multiples class was devised.  It is popular with the exhibitors who still enjoy the benefits of stabling, a drive, time in the main ring and the social side, but they don’t have the pressure of being judged.

Liz worked hard for the first couple of years to drum up support, but this year she had 14 entries and a waiting list.  The number of turnouts in the ring is capped due to capacity and how well an entourage of this size can travel on the local roads during the drive and picnic lunch stop.

The display is certainly very popular with the crowd who appreciate comparing the different carriages and horse breeds.  I try and explain during the commentary what the contrasts are while also telling onlookers about the origins of the turnouts.  With the next Bridgerton series currently being filmed, mentioning the horse-drawn element of this TV mega-hit and how some of us driving folk are involved behind the scenes on the film sets helps make the display more relatable to the general public.

This year the class was boosted by the Wrigley-Millers, with husband and wife Misdee and James participating.  Their horses, carriages and crew have been based at Woburn while they’re on the ‘British tour’ and they produced two turnouts for Suffolk, which were the same as for Royal Windsor – Misdee with Mrs Haydon’s Park Drag with the black Dutch harness horse team, and James with his Shanks Tantivy, formerly owned by the Munt family and sold to an American buyer in the 1970s, with a team of grey Hungarian horses supplied by the Wests.

Also driving Coaches were Paul White with the Holland & Holland Park Drag formerly owned by James Selby and the liver chestnut Dutch harness horses; Callum Feltum with Rod & Barbara Stockton’s homebred Halloughton Hackney horses and the Drag by John Marston of Birmingham; Jack Harris with his Hungarian greys and the Laurie & Marner Drag which was formerly owned by Frank & Jane Warrender; and John & Pebs Brown with their bay team and Nimrod Road Coach, which used to belong to the Gilbey family.

In the multiples section, Dani and Henk van der Wiel had a team of smart, grey Spanish (PRE) horses and a Roof Seat Break; Liz Jarman had a pair and a Wagonette Break, Jimmy Jeffery had his ‘Winchester’ (three abreast) of Highland x Friesians with the Perseverance Char-a-Banc; Sue Robinson had her Friesian pair and a Wagonette Break; Leigh Philips and William Bealing drove Unicorns (which became pairs on day two) and Jessie Dudley Apicella drove a pair of Hackney ponies, accompanied by her young daughter Elsie, which contributed to the family feel of the display.  Russell Hand brought a homebred team with a Break and for the Wednesday, making a long round trip in a day from Telford in Shropshire.

SHOW DRIVING CLASSES

Once the coaching and multiples display had finished in the main ring and gone out on the drive beyond the showground, there was a brief break before the first of the show driving classes in the Trinity Ring.  Gordon Marks was the judge and encouraged all the turnouts to come into the ring at once, so at times there were three to four classes in together which created a more colourful and entertaining display for the crowds.

The first ‘batch’ was the Light Trade and Vintage Vehicle classes.  John Snowdon, who has probably driven at Suffolk Show more times than anyone else, won the four-wheeled section of the Vintage class with his Mulliner Ralli Car and which he bought from a Reading Carriage sale.  Another turnout from his yard, a single Shetland with a varnished Charette driven by Elizabeth Balfour won the two-wheeled section.  Kevin Hutchinson of T Cribb & Son with the Friesian pair and Delivery Brougham were the Light Trade winners.

After lunch, the Private Driving classes assembled in the Trinity Ring.  The standout turnout was Nigel Fuller with his own Trixies Big Diamond who won the over 13.2 hh class then the championship.  Nigel first exhibited the bay Welsh Cob at Suffolk last year when he won the novice class and has brought him on quietly since then.  ‘Dia’ as he’s known at home was on the tailend of a busy few days having been exhibited at the Hertfordshire County Show then Bucks Spectacular at Newbury Showground the previous weekend. Growing in confidence with each outing, Dia clearly enjoyed himself in the ring at Suffolk with its excellent going.  In reserve was the winner of the novice class, Jack Johns & Courtney Pigram’s Crowhide Showman.  Claire Bourne and her versatile pair of British Spotted Ponies with the interesting American style Mills of Paddington Phaeton won the under 13.2 hh class.

The junior whip class only had one entry, but it was a worthy winner in Billy Byrne with Danny Stevens & Joanne Whitmarsh’s ‘Mr Valentine’, who is more often seen as one half of Danny’s tandem.  Danny was kept busy running between helping Dani van der Wiel with her coaching turnout, and racing across the showground in full livery to help Billy – he said he’d caused a few heads to turn as he ran by!  Billy was awarded with the David Snowdon Memorial Perpetual Trophy donated to the show by John & Eileen Snowdon in memory of their late son David.  It was delightful to see John lined up in the same arena as Billy during the prize giving.

POPULAR PLEASURE DRIVING

After the lean numbers in the Trinity Ring, we were delighted with the full Pleasure Driving class.  It’s one of the last classes at the end of day one, in an innocuous side ring near the stables, but it’s always well supported.

There were ten entries, and eight of them came forward.  It was a bit of tight squeeze, but Gordon and the stewards managed the ring well, despite one turnout being decidedly unsettled throughout.  An elderly lady with a Cob that was full of beans and perhaps could have done with a different bit, at the least.

Overall, the standard was high, and the winner was Barbara Bilston with an attractively marked dapple grey Welsh Mountain pony and a Bennington.  A close second was Danny Stevens with Mr Valentine, and Julia Prentice with a small pair of Shetlands that seemed to have big characters, one was 16 and the other was 6, was third. It was great to see the talented Charlie Parker King deal with a rather anxious young Cob that had come into the Light Trade class earlier but was too unsettled to continue, and Charlie and the owner made the sensible decision to leave – there’s always another day, or another class.  Popping the Cob into an Exercise Wagonette and coming back into a ring that had far less going on – around the Trinity Ring it’s especially noisy and buzzy – meant that Charlie could school the horse round and build its confidence back up again.  It was also good to see Tom Farmer in the class, driving the eye-catching Cob Hercules, who Liz Harcombe has been driving recently. We’re more used to seeing Tom driving his commercial horses so it was lovely to witness an experienced horseman drive a turnout that he’d only met a few hours beforehand, and making it look easy.

WHAT TO DO?

There’s no doubt that having a HOYS qualifier makes a big difference to a show and having had a ticket for a couple of years for the Private Driving, Suffolk didn’t get one this year.  As a result, the number of entries was lower and it’s a shame that when an organisation makes such an effort to welcome the exhibitors, give them plenty of ring time in a super space, there isn’t the support because there isn’t a pathway to HOYS. There are other factors, not least the hike in fuel prices due to the global situation and filling up lorries and 4×4 vehicles is eye-wateringly pricey.  But there’s a sense that unless we use them, we will lose these classes.

Equally, there has been a change in what and how people are driving, and the drop in numbers isn’t limited to driving or Suffolk Show.  Many events and classes simply haven’t recovered after the pandemic.  More people tend to take up driving trials at entry level, be it indoor or outdoor, where placings are decided on performance and penalties, and not one person’s opinion.  And as we saw in the well supported Pleasure Driving class, exhibitors will come to shows, but let’s be realistic – the carriages and harness that are used for this class are the same as can be used for driving trials and everyday driving.  So, there’s less outlay, cleaning and maintenance than with antique or painted show carriages, or leather and brass sets of harness.

But if we want to keep our showing classes at events like Suffolk Show, which does all it can to enable exhibitors to have a great experience, we need to drum up some more support. Answers on a postcard please.