TYPICAL Bank Holiday weather failed to dampen the spirits of visitors to Bishop Burton College’s annual Town and Country Day.

Some brave souls had picnic lunches in the rain and their British bulldog spirit was rewarded with enough sunshine in the afternoon to make it worth the ice-cream sellers’ while.

Thousands of visitors enjoyed the day at the college near Beverley, with main ring entertainment including a brass band, dancers and a stuntman . A new addition to this year’s line-up was K9 Quackers, a sheepdog duck herding display and dancing dogs which delighted the crowds.

Other favourites of the day were the rugby 7s which saw Hull FC vs Bishop Burton academy, children’s activities, shire horses and the unveiling of the college’s newly redesigned walled garden.

Jeanette Dawson OBE, principal and chief executive of Bishop Burton, said this year’s event had been extra special because of it being Diamond Jubilee Year for the college.

“It’s always a joy to open up the college to the public,” said Mrs Dawson. “We have plenty of farmers and country people visit but we also get lots of families from the towns and cities. It’s very rewarding to see them all go home with a smile on their faces.

“Town and County Day is a busy day for staff; but it’s one of those occasions when all the extra hard work seems worthwhile. There’s nothing makes the clearing up easier at the end of the day than the memory of all those happy people. I’m sure I shall still be smiling at the end of the week after watching the sausage eating competition for dogs … a whippet won in the end but it was a greedy Labrador that had me in stitches! I thought afterwards; only at Bishop Burton can such a fun day also be an educational day out for so many people.”

Displays, demonstrations and hands-on activities all had a distinctly rural flavour such as falconry and chainsaw sculpture. Visitors got the chance to meet the college’s exotic residents including reptiles, otters, marmosets and meerkats. Some visitors also went to watch the final day’s competition at the Bishop Burton Horse Trials which were running over the same date.

*Separate info panel about garden*

A new look for an historic East Yorkshire walled garden was unveiled at the weekend.

The ambitious redesign of Bishop Burton College’s walled garden was open to the public for the first time since work on the project started in 2012. The unveiling was timed to coincide with the college’s ever-popular annual Town and Country Day which took place on Sunday (May 25th).

New features in the 1.5 acre Victorian garden include an AGM Garden (plants awarded the RHS accolade), a Hedge Garden, Laburnum arch, open air theatre and replanted hot bed and central herbaceous border.

The college’s head gardener Jane Bonney took visitors on tours of the garden.

The garden, which dates from the 1890s was originally used as a fruit, vegetable and herb garden for High Hall, which once stood on the site of the college’s main building. It fell into disrepair but was resurrected by the College in the 1960s to be an ornamental garden that could also be used as a teaching resource for its many horticulture students.

Jane says that because it had been used by so many different staff and students over the years it had sadly become a bit of a “mish mash” of styles.

“It has been a fantastic opportunity for our team to redesign the entire plot and bring the garden into the 21st Century while - of course - being sympathetic to its historical integrity.

“The redevelopment is something that we’re very proud of. It was brilliant on Sunday to actually stop gardening and show our hard work off to the public.”