TWO of Dorset's leading rural shows have announced a new secretary and organiser with 40 years of experience in the farming industry.

Nick Hill has been appointed by Gillingham & Shaftesbury Agricultural Society as new show secretary and event organiser for the Spring Countryside Show, and the Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show.

The former is the first of the year on Dorset's rural events calendar, which takes place over two days in April and showcases rural life and crafts. 

The latter, meanwhile, runs in August and receives thousands of visitors and will also be a two-day event this year. Both take place at the Turnpike Showground in Motcombe, north Dorset. 

Mr Hill said: “My aim is to continue the massive success and growth of these shows, both the Spring Countryside Show which received 12,000 visitors in its first year and the Gillingham and Shaftesbury show in August which had a record number of 25,000 visitors in one day.

“This proves the huge success of the show and the need to just keep getting better and take the show to an even more exciting level. 

"I’ve only been in this new role a few weeks and am already bowled over by the enthusiasm of everyone, especially our amazing volunteers."

Tickets are now on sale for both shows. Visit gillinghamandshaftesburyshow.co.uk