Frocks and flocks

As the Great Yorkshire Show prepares for its first virtual outing, Stephanie Smith celebrates the rise and rise of the prestigious Fashion Pavilion.

If fashion and farming do not at first strike as obvious bedfellows, a visit to the Great Yorkshire Show’s Fashion Pavilion, next door to the rabbits, pigeons and poultry, will soon set you right. You might be surprised to learn that the renowned agricultural event provides the county’s largest and most prestigious platform for fashion designers to showcase their talents alongside some of the UK’s best-known biggest high street names.

It plays four times a day to packed audiences, from proud family and friends to industry talent spotters, those in search of wardrobe inspiration and maybe just a few who fancy a sit-down and some entertainment (especially when it’s raining).

Since 1997, the shows have been produced by Bernadette Gledhill. She has special memories of visiting the

Great Yorkshire Show as a child with her aunt and uncle, who were farmers. “One particular year stands out when I was a young teenager in 1970,” she says. “I went to the British Wool Pavilion where I watched my first ever fashion show. I loved it so much, I watched it twice. I never imagined that one day I would become a model and then produce and direct the fashion shows for the Yorkshire Agricultural Society.

I still pinch myself every year.”