DESPITE a soggy Saturday, the Royal Three Counties Show at Malvern bounced back yesterday to leave organisers satisfied, but a bit frustrated.

“We were handicapped slightly because forecasters got the weather wrong,” said Ken Nottage, chief executive of the Three Counties Agricultural Society. “Going into the event our advance sales were 30 per cent up, but this was wiped out on Saturday by the forecast of heavy storms. In the event these didn’t happen and although there was drizzle during the day, it was no means bad weather, but by then people had made their minds up. Still the sun came out on Sunday and allowed us to hopefully make up ground.”

Mr Nottage added that the sun had certainly seemed to shine on the agricultural machinery retailers. “There are firms here with some seriously large pieces of kit,” he said, “ One of them told me he had sold seven major items on the first day, which was his target for the entire show. So the agricultural sector certainly seems to be picking up.”

More than 60 entries covering 17 classes fought for honours in the Three Counties Cheese Show. Eventually judges gave the supreme championship to multi-award winner Charles Martell of Dymock, near Ross on Wye with a soft sheep’s milk cheese Nun of Caen.

Reserve supreme champion was a cheese called Little Hereford from Monkland Cheese Dairy at Monkland, Hereford.

One of the most popular children’s participation attractions at the show was a “make your own” cheese offer from Croome Cuisine of Whittington, near Worcester. Youngsters were invited to choose from a list of flavourings including honey and fig and Worcester sauce and shallots, add them to pre-grated cheese and then put the mixture into a small press, which produced small tubes of personalised cheese. “This is the first time we have done this at the show and it’s proved a real winner,” said Gary Tucker of the cheese company.

Another first for the Royal Three Counties this year was the appearance of a small flock of Ouessant sheep, the smallest sheep in the world which originate from the tiny windswept granite island of the same name 12 miles off Brittany in France.

These had travelled a shorter distance, being owned by Bethan Davies of Bromsgrove, who bought some three years ago to clear an overgrown paddock for her horses. “They will eat anything,” said Miss Davies, “but they are still very rare in this country and I am hoping to get the breed better known.” She is the registrar of the breed society, which was formed in 2005, and still has only 80 members across the entire UK.

The Royal Three Counties cider show turned out to be a tour de force for Herefordshire producer Tom Oliver, who owns Oliver’s Cider and Perry of Ocle Pychard, Hereford. He won three class prizes and also took the best in Herefordshire and the overall best in show with a bottle of conditioned perry. Mr Oliver exclaimed: “I’m pleased as punch,”

In a record cattle entry, the inter breed beef championship went to three years old home bred British Limousin cow Dinemore Glorious owned by Paul Dawes of Dinemore, Hereford