A smartly dressed, bowler-hatted man and a lady in a fascinator – both of whom would hardly look out of place at Royal Ascot – stride into the pigsty with clipboards, while a white-coated man (looking a little too much like a butcher) seeks the views of a small crowd of adults and children on the qualities of four physically impressive swine. This is the delightful eccentricity of the English county show – part agricultural competition, part funfair, part entertainment, part craft fair, part trade show, part society occasion, and part food and drink extravaganza – that provides an unrivalled insight into the complexity of modern Britain’s rural economy and culture.

The pigs are physically impressive, yet somewhat disengaged from the proceedings – for all continue to nap contentedly while

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