Video and pictures: Burwarton Show 2015

Thousands poured through the gates well into the afternoon at the Burwarton Show, one of the largest one-day events of its type.

The show, held at the showground between Bridgnorth and Ludlow, attracts farmers from across the region and beyond to show off prize-winning cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and horses.

But over the years it has also evolved into a major fun day for all the family, with a main arena that saw show-jumping, vintage vehicles, fancy dress on horseback and the Royal Signals' Motorbike Display Team – also known as the White Helmets – performing high-speed acrobatic stunts.

The show was runner-up in the Farmer's competition for agricultural shows nationwide – and this year featured the world's fastest tractor.

Mike Bradbury, taking the role of show chairman for the second year running, said the early morning downpour may actually have helped boost numbers.

Indicating the sunny weather in the afternoon, he said: "If it was like this this morning a lot of the farmers may have rushed out to the fields to get the hay in – but since it was raining they might have thought they would come here instead.

"It was a damp start but that hasn't worked against us, there's a very good crowd.

"Whether it is a record or not I can't yet say, but there are still people streaming in and traffic backed up on the road."

He said livestock competition entries were up.

"We've had a very full entry of sheep, so much that we had to borrow extra hurdles to keep them in.

"We've had 50-odd entries in the pig classes and there were only 70 at the Royal Welsh Show, so we're doing well."

He said new for this year were poultry competitions and bee-keeping demonstrations. And vintage Land Rovers had been added to the regular gathering of antique tractors.

Another form of transport from days gone by was an Austin 20/4 Clifton tourer owned by David and Carolyn Michie of Middleton, near Ludlow. The couple were selling raffle tickets to win a trip to Hampton Court in the tourer, with proceeds going to the Midlands Air Ambulance, which had a stall with a replica helicopter cockpit next door.

Mr Michie, a 63-year-old self employed gardener, said his wife, a nurse at Ludlow Hospital, had always wanted such a car, and they had only recently acquired it.

He said: "We'd been looking around on ebay for quite a long time and then one cropped up in Craven Arms, believe it or not."

Another remarkable vehicle on site was a huge Valtra T-series tractor, shipped in all the way from Finland, where it broke the Guinness World Record for fastest tractor.

Robin Edwards, director of Edwards and Farmer Ltd, displaying the vehicle, said it had reached 80mph driven by Finnish rally champion Juha Kankkunen in snow tyres on ice.

"It's a standard agricultural tractor but it's had a different gear put in so not to rev the engine too much," he said, adding that it was being shipped off again to Belgium today.

Over in the cattle section, one of those celebrating was 18-year-old Richard Heath, there with father Anthony and brother Alex of Eaton House farm near Market Drayton.

He said their Simmental cow Popes Whispers Cocoa had won first reserve champion in her class, the latest in a string of awards after being crowned champion at the Shropshire County Show.

"It's a good result," he said, "It's been a good day, but it was an early start – we were up at 5am."

It was a full family affair in the sheep section for the James clan of The Cleeve in Ditton Priors.

Mandy James, 55, was watching husband Paul, son Oliver and nephew Ben show off their Charollais sheep. With her were daughter Charlotte and her husband Neil Davies, as well as Ben's wife Kaylie.

She said they had won champion with both their yearling tuppe and aged tuppe, as well as coming first with their interbreed trio.

"We've been in the village for 10 years and we've come every year, this is our local show. Before that we lived in Tenbury Wells, so we did come sometimes then as well."

She said her neighbours, 14-year-old Jack and five-year-old Josie Pritchard, the children of friend Sarah, were in the young sheep handlers' competition with her sheep later in the day.

Other farming families were simply enjoying the day.

The Brassingtons, from Cressage, were making their annual visit but not showing any livestock.

Father James, 31, there with wife Laura, 30, and children Lydia, six, and Mia, three, said: "It's good, it's busy, probably the weather has helped.

"The highlight has probably been the animals for the kids – they loved the sheepdogs in the arena."

Meanwhile Val Bond and Betty Saunders had returned to Shropshire especially for the show.

The pair moved to Cambridge in November to be closer to the family, after living for 15 years in Clun.

Betty, 78, said: "I've come to see the craft tent really, and we've had a bacon sandwich.

"It's usually the same, there are places you recognise, which is nice. I bought shoes today from the same man who was here last year."

Val, 76, said: "We missed Shropshire and everybody has welcomed us back this week."

Over in the craft tent mother and daughter Andrea and Naomi Mountford were taking new Ludlow-based business Mamomi Jewellery out on the road.

Andrea, previously an industrial space planner, retrained with a City and Guilds qualification in jewellery-making at Westhope Craft College near Craven Arms two years ago.

She said: "This is out first time at Burwarton and only our fourth show. Our business started last October and our website has just gone live."

Nearby, Nikki Hook of Ludlow's Loudwater Studio was showing off items made by people from all backgrounds at the community arts and recording space.

She said: "The studio was set up with disabled people in mind, but we want to encourage everyone to get involved. We want to get the word out."

After a mid-afternoon parade of livestock, horse and ponies, the White Helmets took to the arena for the second time towards the end of the day, followed by another sheepdog display from the Bob Hogg canine team.

The day was capped off with an inter-hunt relay competition, and finally a tug-of-war between the Young Farmers clubs.