Enjoying the great outdoors at Highclere

The Highclere Country Fair attracted good crowds over the bank holiday weekend

THE Highclere Country Fair held over the bank holiday weekend saw Team England triumph in the world cup for retrievers.

England, led by captain Dave Latham, notched up its fifth win in the Skinner's International Retriever World Cup, finishing ahead of Wales in second, Holland in third and defending champions Sweden in fifth, with 710 points.

The fair, organised by Countryman Fairs, returned to Highclere Castle for the 15th year on Sunday and Monday and played host to a range of events to entertain and challenge hunting enthusiasts, including the retrievers world cup.

A challenge for dogs and handlers, the retrievers competition simulates field hunting, with blanks fired and canvas dummies thrown into the course to test their wits.

Countryman Fairs spokeswoman Danielle Derry said the event was a big success: “These events attract the world's best and this year was no different.

“In terms of spectators, we were up on previous years. We had good weather on the Sunday, which always helps, but even on Monday, when it was a little rainy, people were not deterred.”

Apart from the retriever world cup, a host of other gundog events also took place at the fair, including, the Mitsubishi Motors World Series Gundog Championship and the Countryman's Weekly Champion of Champions Terrier and Lurcher events.

There were also qualifiers for the clay shooting world series.

For those less interested in shooting, the fair had lots of re-enactments, including jousting in the arena, with the Knights of Middle England, activities led by Foxhollow's Animal Sanctuary and a range of other events.