The Irish Shows Association online virtual show proved a massive hit over the weekend.

The show attracted more than 1,700 entries across all the classes you’d expect to see at a regular show. Of course, this was only launched due to the cancellation of shows due to COVID-19. The interest garnered pre-event and amount of people viewing online on the day are a testament to the appetite for shows returning.

Former Minister for Agriculture Dara Calleary was due to open the show on Saturday morning, but as he stepped down on Friday, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Martin Hayden joined the ISA live from his home in Kildare to perform the official opening.

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This kicked off over eight hours of show activity live from the ISA website and through their social media channels. Along with announcing all of the respective winners across the categories, there were a number of pre-recorded interviews and segments with a number of people from across the agricultural sector.

The day concluded with a unique parade of all the champions throughout the day

Like any country show, the day was broken up with musical interludes from a range of musicians as well as a number of cooking demos from celebrity chefs.

The day concluded with a unique parade of all the champions throughout the day.

Closing out proceedings, ISA president Catherine Gallagher thanked everyone for contributing to a fantastic day of entertainment and encouraged everyone to push back the furniture and dance the evening away with their virtual show dance.

Overall, the day was a huge success. Much credit must go to all involved, particularly the ISA top table, who put much effort into ensuring its success and that showgoers would have something to enjoy in a time of such uncertainty.