Written by Rachel Martin
It might be one of the few agricultural shows to proceed this year but The Royal Ulster Agricultural Society (RUAS) has announced its winter beef event will take place behind closed doors.
It comes after Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned large events could be banned for up to six months as Covid-19 numbers indicate a second wave of the virus in the UK.
The Royal Ulster Premier Beef and Lamb Championships is scheduled to take place at Balmoral Park on November 24, followed by the Royal Ulster Winter Fair on December 10.
Plans for 2020
Attendance at Beef and Lamb will be strictly limited with a live stream of the show and sale planned. However, no updates have yet been made on plans for the Winter Fair.
It’s likely to be one of just a few this season. Organisers for the English Winter Fair and Royal Welsh Winter Fair have already announced both shows will not take place in 2020.
An RUAS spokesman said: “This year due to Covid-19 restrictions the show of premium beef cattle and lamb will be closed to the public and will take place behind closed doors.
Balmoral cancelled
The society was forced to cancel Balmoral Show earlier this year as lockdown measures prohibited all large public gatherings.
Record crowds of 120,000 attended the 2019 Balmoral Show. The show was initially due to take place on May 13-16 this year, but was postponed on March 16 after the coronavirus pandemic escalated.
Plans were put in place to instead run the show from Wednesday to Saturday, August 19-22, 2020. However, these were also shelved.
Also Read: English and Royal Welsh winter fairs cancelled
It also joined other large-scale shows such as the Royal Highland Show, Royal Welsh Show and Yorkshire Show in cancelling this year because of coronavirus.
The 152nd Balmoral Show will now take place in partnership with Ulster Bank from Wednesday to Saturday, May 12-15, 2021, at Balmoral Park, Lisburn.
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