Tag: Royal Highland Show 2026

One month to go until Scotland’s ultimate family day out

Rural charm, horse power and big entertainment make a return to the Royal Highland Show

●      Children aged 15 and under go FREE, making it one of the country’s biggest family days out

●      The Reeling to bring a star-studded contemporary trad line-up to the Show for a special one-day edition

●      Tickets selling fast as organisers urge visitors to plan ahead

The countdown is officially on until the Royal Highland Show returns to Edinburgh, with Scotland’s largest outdoor event now just one month away.

More than 200,000 visitors are expected to descend on the Royal Highland Centre for four days celebrating the very best of food, farming, entertainment and family fun, as the Show returns from Thursday 18 to Sunday 21 June 2026. As the principal fundraising event for RHASS (Royal Highland Agricultural Society of Scotland), the Show plays a vital role in supporting Scottish agriculture and rural communities.

To mark the milestone, organisers staged a playful photo opportunity at Ingliston bringing together some of the Show’s most recognisable –  and unexpected –  attractions, including a horse in traditional side saddle dress, a hobbyhorse, Shetland sheep, a tractor, a piper and several of the event’s coveted trophies, offering a glimpse of the scale and spectacle visitors can expect this June.

This year’s programme will once again showcase the best of rural Scotland alongside crowd-drawing displays, from traditional sheep shearing, farrier contests and pole climbing to BMX stunt riders, axe throwing and chainsaw carving displays.

Families can also enjoy a packed programme of hands-on activities, including mini Land Rovers, RHET’s education hub – where visitors can milk Mabel the Cow, plant peas and sample Scottish cheese –  alongside donkeys, horses and more than 6,000 livestock animals across the site.

Children aged 15 and under can attend free when accompanied by a paying adult, reinforcing the Show’s position as one of Scotland’s biggest and best-value family days out. Sunday 21 June will once again be dedicated to families, featuring live milking and shearing demonstrations, interactive activities and, for the first time, the chance to try hobby horsing. Sunday family tickets can currently be purchased for £70 for two adults and up to six children. Adult tickets are priced at £45 each.

David Tennant, Head of Show for RHASS, said: “The Royal Highland Show is just one month away and we’re incredibly excited to welcome visitors back for what promises to be one of the biggest and best events of the summer.

“The Show is a true celebration of Scotland, from our food and farming industries to music, entertainment, innovation and rural life, and there really is something for everyone to enjoy.

“One minute you can be watching world-class livestock judging or sparks flying in the farrier arena, and the next you’re seeing BMX stunts, enjoying incredible Scottish food or dancing along to live music. There’s nowhere else quite like it.”

Adding to the excitement, the Royal Highland Show has partnered with The Reeling for a special one-day festival on Saturday 20 June. The Royal Highland Show Presents The Reeling will celebrate Scotland’s contemporary folk scene with performances from Breabach, Dlù, Dougie MacLean, Elephant Sessions, Kinnaris Quintet and Skippinish, bringing a festival atmosphere to Ingliston on the Saturday evening.

Across the weekend, principal beer partner Innis & Gunn will host live music and entertainment across the Show’s 24 bars, helping keep the atmosphere going long after the competitions finish.

Spanning 197 hectares, roughly the size of 180 football pitches, the Royal Highland Centre transforms during Show week into a bustling hub of livestock, competition, music, food and entertainment. For four days, Ingliston effectively becomes Scotland’s sixth-largest populated area, temporarily larger than both Paisley and Dunfermline as exhibitors, competitors and visitors travel from across the country and beyond.

David continued: “We’re also seeing strong ticket sales already, and with up to 55,000 people expected onsite each day, we’d encourage visitors to book early and consider using public transport where possible.”

Tickets for the Royal Highland Show and The Reeling are available now at: Royal Highland Show. Children aged 15 and under go free when accompanied by a paying adult, although tickets are still required. Maximum three children per paying adult.

Pens at the ready: Pupils invited to envision farming’s future with short story competition

  • Royal Highland Show launches short story competition to explore future of farming ahead of this year’s June event
  • Competition is open to primary 5-7 and S1-S3 pupils across Scotland
  • Entry deadline is Friday 15th May
RHASS Kids writing competition

Young writers across Scotland are being challenged to put pen to paper and bring the future of farming to life, as the Royal Highland Show launches a nationwide short story competition as part of Scotland’s National Year of Reading.

Open to primary pupils from P5-P7 and Secondary pupils from S1 to S3, the competition aims to connect classrooms with Scotland’s land, food systems and rural communities by encouraging pupils to explore one of four themes through their creative writing submissions: the future of farming, sustainable food production, innovation in agriculture or caring for animals, crops or the environment.

The Royal Highland Show – Scotland’s largest fundraising event run by leading agricultural charity RHASS (Royal Highland Agricultural Society of Scotland) – has long championed education, innovation and the future of farming. The competition aims to build on this legacy by inviting a new generation to imagine the future of agriculture, from futuristic farming methods and rural adventure stories, to exploring the connection between people, animals and the environment.

The judging panel for the competition brings together expertise from across the agriculture and the literary worlds and is formed of Keith-based children’s author Catherine Stables, Head of the Royal Highland Show, David Tennant, and Dumfries and Galloway based author, bookseller and publisher at Foggie Toddle Books, Jayne Baldwin.

This year’s Royal Highland Show takes place across four-days in June from Thursday 18th to Sunday 21st at the Royal Highland Centre in Ingliston, Edinburgh. Children aged 15 and under go for free and over 200k people are expected to attend.

The Sunday of the Show will offer a dedicated family day with activities including sheep shearing and milking demonstrations, a kids zone with mini tractors, hobby horsing and facepainting, as well as mountain bike displays and mini–Land Rovers.

Head of Show, David Tennant, said: “The Royal Highland Show is all about celebrating and sustaining the future of Scottish agriculture.

“This competition offers a unique way to help connect young people with rural Scotland, encouraging them to think creatively about how we might grow and source our food, or how innovation might support farmers in the decades ahead.

“We’re excited to see how pupils across Scotland interpret these themes and bring them to life through their storytelling.”

Children’s author and competition judge, Catherine Stables, is a working vet based in Keith in the North East of Scotland with her series of Shona the Vet books, inspired by her veterinary experience and love of animals.

She said: “This new competition is a wonderful initiative and one I feel very passionate about. Encouraging children to read and write is so important, and when you connect that with learning about our rural landscape, farming and culture, it becomes something really special.

” You don’t need a farming background to enter, just lots of creativity to imagine how our farms might operate in years to come. I’m excited to see the creativity it sparks.”

Dumfries and Galloway based author, bookseller and publisher at Foggie Toddle Books, Jayne Baldwin’s books include Betty’s New Best Friend about a Belted Galloway and a Highland Cow and The Highland Cowgirl – Showtime which is all about the adventures of a young girl at an agricultural show.

Jayne, said: “The National Year of Reading provides such an excellent platform to encourage young people to discover or rediscover a love of reading, whether that’s picking up a picture book, novel, comic book, or even a magazine.

“This competition is an opportunity to have fun with words and imagine an entirely new world, created entirely by you, of how we’ll farm, look after animals and work in agriculture ten, twenty or thirty years from now. It’ll be fascinating to read what’s in store!”

Open to pupils across the country, entries must be original work, with one submission per pupil, and an accompanying illustration is welcomed but optional.

Primary (P5-P7) pupils are asked that their stories have a maximum of 250 words, and Secondary (S1-S3) pupils have a maximum of 500 words. Entries can be hand written or typed.

All entries must relate to at least one of the following themes: The future of farming, Sustainable food production, Innovation in agriculture or Caring for animals, crops or the environment.

Winners will be announced ahead of the Show taking place in June, with two winners and two runners-up recognised across the primary and secondary categories.

Prize packages will include family tickets to attend the Sunday of the Royal Highland Show, book vouchers (£100 for winners and £50 for runners-up) and the winning stories being published in national farming title, The Scottish Farmer.

The winners will also receive family passes to the Wigtown Book Festival which takes place in Dumfries & Galloway in the autumn. 

The competition closes on Friday 15th May. 

All entries should be emailed by teachers to:

rhsshortstorycomp@mucklemediagroup.co.uk

and include the name of the pupil and their year group.