The Dorset County Show is promising one of its biggest spectacles yet this September, with Europe’s largest monster truck taking centre stage alongside two days packed with livestock, food, farming and family entertainment.
Returning to Dorchester on 5th and 6th September, this year’s show will welcome Big Pete and The Grim Reaper to the NFU Mutual Main Ring, where the giant machines will leap, crush and tear apart cars in a display designed to shake the ground.
Weighing 7.5 tonnes and standing 16ft tall, Big Pete is billed as the world’s only ‘real’ monster truck, purpose-built for one thing – spectacular destruction. Alongside him, the lighter, more agile Grim Reaper promises high-speed jumps and precision stunts in what is expected to be one of the show’s biggest arena attractions.
A full day’s entertainment
Away from the roar of the engines, however, the Dorset County Show remains firmly rooted in its agricultural heritage. Hundreds of cattle, sheep, pigs and goats will fill the livestock lines, while equestrian competitions, sheepdog demonstrations, heavy horses, traditional crafts, horticulture and the ever-popular food halls showcase the very best of Dorset’s countryside. Visitors can also meet alpacas, watch axemen demonstrations, browse hundreds of trade stands and enjoy more than ten hours of entertainment across the showground each day. Saturday evening will round off with a performance from West Country favourites The Wurzels, adding another crowd-pleasing highlight to the weekend.
The show also continues to celebrate the county’s competitive spirit, with entries across livestock, horticulture, homecraft and equestrian classes.
Visitors shuld keep an eye out for the celebrity judges, including The Traitors winner James Baker, who will judge the horticulture displays on Saturday, and actress Alison Steadman, who is expected to judge the novelty sheep classes on Sunday, subject to filming commitments.
Whether you’re drawn by monster trucks crushing cars, prize-winning livestock or simply one of Dorset’s biggest annual celebrations of farming and rural life, the 2026 County Show promises plenty to fill a day.
Advance tickets are available until 30th August, priced from £21 for adults and £2 for children, before prices rise during show week.
dorsetcountyshow.co.uk
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