Women allowed at celebratory dinner for first time


Women are to attend a previously men-only farming awards dinner for the first time in more than 100 years.
The Devon show, which has been running for more than a century, sees farmers compete for the best livestock.
Until this year, women were excluded from the men-only evening event, which farmer Chloe Quantick described as “silly”.
On Tuesday evening men and women will be able to celebrate at the Dartmouth Fatstock Show dinner together for the first time after a vote was passed to change the century-old rules.

Ms Quantick said: “It’s the way it should be, we’re all equal.
“I don’t see why there had to be this divide of women weren’t allowed to go. We’re all the same.
“Farm together. Celebrate together.”
Previously, prizes were distributed to men and women at an afternoon ceremony, before the men’s awards were presented for a second time at a hotel dinner.
Last year, show chairman Phil Bond said he believed “ladies are really not bothered” and described the dinner as “a tradition”.
At a show committee meeting held before the 2018 event, a vote was held backing the continued exclusion of women, leading to one farmer resigning in protest.

Farmer, Sue Fildes, said she would be attending the dinner.
“To be honest, if it was men only I wouldn’t have been bothered either way,” she added.
“Because ladies are invited and there’s a good band of us that do well at the show, we’ve decided to go.”
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