A 23-YEAR-old from Dorset has staked a claim to fame as the country’s youngest ever show organiser.

James Cox, who was born and raised on his family’s farm near Dorchester, has taken over as the Show Organiser for the Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show, making him the youngest ever.

He joined up in autumn of 2019, coming from the Royal Bath and West of England Society. For five years, he had been a trade stand manager and a sponsorship and marketing officer for both The Bath and West Show and The Dairy Show and Grassland UK.

Mr Cox also helped with the Association for UK Shows.

He takes the title of the nation’s youngest show organiser from Will Hyde, Secretary of the Dorset County Show, who assumed the role at the age of 28.

James Cox, Show Secretary and Organiser, said: “I am excited for my first Show as organiser but also apprehensive. We have introduced new branding, website, attractions, ticket prices and business opportunities but our values remain the same, at the absolute core is agriculture and the Great British Countryside. The aim is to showcase everything great about our region and what comes from it, putting the consumer in contact with the producer while the farmers meet their buyers, suppliers & machinery dealers. With tickets already on sale and trade and sponsorship partnerships rolling in, it all feels like it is beginning to come together, I am really keen to see what the next few months bring.”

The Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show will take place this year on the Turnpike Showground on August 19. An office team of three, together with more than 200 volunteers, work to make the show possible for thousands to enjoy.

For this year’s show, more than 400 trade stands have been booked, including craft producers, national clothing brands and machinery dealerships.

To find out more, visit gillinghamandshaftesburyshow.co.uk