Dalmally farmers to judge prestigious competition at Northumberland show
SYBIL and George MacPherson of Brackley Farm, Dalmally, who featured in the BBC series
This Farming Life, have been invited to judge the agricultural highlight of the Northumberland County Show, the JS Hubbucks Champion of Champions competition.
The prize is awarded to an exceptional animal picked from the Grand Parade of Champions. Sybil and George said: ‘We are delighted and honoured to be asked to fulfil this prestigious role.’ This Farming Life was a 12-part series shown on BBC2 in 2016. It followed the struggles and triumphs of five farming families in some of Scotland’s most beautiful and remote landscapes.
Sybil and George MacPherson said the TV series ‘connected farmers to the public’ and informed them about what goes on behind the scenes on farms all over Scotland.
‘Farming is our business, but it is so much more than that. It’s a way of life that also involves looking after the countryside and taking very good care of our animals,’ they said.
The five Munros on the couple’s land have been farmed by Sybil’s family for more than 175 years. Their Blackface sheep are very hardy as snow is often still found on their hillsides in June. Some ewes are hefted to high hill areas and are only gathered a few times a year. The suckler herd spends the summer on the farm and during the winter the herd is off the farm on lower ground.
Sybil and George said: ‘Our farming life is tough and the ups and downs of looking after animals can be extremely demanding, but never dull.’