It might have been ‘Blue Wednesday,’ but there was anything but the blues as Skipton Auction Mart’s annual showcase for British Blue bulls and females proved one of the most successful in its history, launching the venue’s 2023 pedigree beef season in fine style with total clearance of the 20 head forward, all selling well into four figures. (Wed, Apr 26)

Allan and Deirdre Wilkinson’s Springfield herd from Out Rawcliffe, Preston, was top of the shop on price when achieving 5,400gns with Springfield Phoebe, a June, 2020, Dafydd D’Ochain daughter, out of the Empire D’Ochain-bred Springfield Izzie, a highly prolific dam now aged ten, who this month has just had her ninth calf.

Phoebe was sold with her January-born Ballygrange Alex-sired heifer calf, Springfield Toni - the outfit had earlier finished runner-up in its show class – and the successful bidder at a buzzing ringside was Kirklees beef farmer John Dodson, of Farnley Tyas, near Huddersfield.

The Wilkinsons, who established their now 20-strong herd at Springfield Farm in 1992, also finished third in the maiden heifer show class with Springfield Samantha, a 15-month-old again by Dafydd D’Ochain, out of another home-bred, Springfield Ovatie, which added a further 3,700gns to the Red Rose breeders’ purse when also going to Mr Dodson, who took home four in total, all prize-winning females.

His other acquisitions both came from Calderdale’s Johnny and Shannon Crowther, who run the Making Place herd in Soyland, Halifax. First up at 3,100gns was the red rosette winner in the in-calf or with calf at foot show class, the September, 2020, Makingplace Penny, by Lukeroyal Mcauley and scanned in-calf due this coming September to Elderberry Galahad.

This was followed at 2,600gns by the runner-up in the maiden heifer show class, a sweet heifer, the April, 2022, Sandyvale Jagerbomb daughter, Makingplace Salty, out of the Tweedale Ironman-bred Tipladys Malibu.

Mr Dodson is currently re-building his dual-purpose pedigree holding, his four Skipton acquisitions joining another six Blues bought privately last year and now into their second year of calving from the Whalley family, who run the Jaygar herd in the Ribble Valley and themselves made their mark at this year’s Skipton showcase, along with a further six pedigree Limousins, again acquired in 2022 – four from the East Yorkshire Elderberry herd, the other two from the Warwickshire-based Honesberie herd. A brace of pedigree Limousin bulls are utilised for commercial crossing with the Blues, the herd now standing at some 70-strong.

Mr Dodson is also renowned for running a highly successful livery yard, breeding, eventing and showing horses for the past 20 years and qualifying virtually annually for the prestigious Horse of the Year Show. In addition, 300 acres are put to haylage at his Ivy Farm, which is also the venue for the annual Honley Agricultural Show.

Planning permission has just been granted for a new farm shop, which on completion will be run by Mr Dodson’s eldest daughter, Josephine, who has just opened ‘Field,’ a coffee shop and cafe in the village, which runs alongside an outside catering business.

Top price bull at 5,000gns was the only 2019-born entry in the sale from Dean Saunders, who runs the Maidenlands herd at Tarn Flatt, Ulverston, first established in his own name for the Lake District breeder when he was just nine-years-old - he is now in his late 20s.

Well-utilised as a stock bull on the herd, producing calves of low birthweight, Chatham Othello was bred in Northern Ireland by the Morrison family, of Ballycastle, a small seaside town in County Antrim, and is by the Kersey Geronimo son, Chatham Karl, bred from a Newpole Dermot daughter, Chatham Glenda.

Third in the senior bull show class for Mr Saunders, who stood supreme champion on his Blue Wednesday debut in 2021, Othello joins Sam Baldock, from Ringmer in Sussex, to be utilised as a replacement bull on British Friesian cows with the aim of breeding commercial show cattle. Sam and his father, Gary, have achieved national fame as so-called ‘urban shepherds,’ grazing their sheep – both Herdwick and Cheviot conservation breeds and a near 800-strong flock of Scotch Mules - on the border estates of Brighton city centre.

The supreme championship fell to North Yorkshire father and son, Stewart and Joel Gill, of Hall Field House Farm, Dacre, with a 14-month-old bull, Hallfield Rocco, an AI son of the Scottish-bred Tamhorn Enterprising, himself by Ballygrange Alex, out of a well-proven home-bred cow, the Dafydd D’Ochain daughter, Hallfield Easy, who has certainly lived up to her name as a productive mother and is still going strong in the herd at the age of 14.

Rocco was first tapped out as winner of the older 2021-born bulls show class by judge Joe Crust, who runs the aptly-named Betterbread pedigree Limousin herd in Spilsby, Lincolnshire, describing his chosen supreme as “a good, correct mobile bull,” also praising the overall quality of the breeding animals on show.

The Gills ¬ - Stewart judged Blue Wednesday last year - run the Hallfield Blues herd near Harrogate and their title winner made 4,800gns when going to Calderdale with Midgley hill farmer Ryan Farrell, who was seeking an additional sire for commercial breeding and will be put to Blue, Limousin and Angus-cross cows at his Hanroyd Farm. Mr Farrell also runs a groundworks firm, R Farrell Plant Hire.

An impressive bull, Littlebank Rascal, was next up at 4,200gns after being shown in and winning the junior bulls class for local husband and wife, Richard and Wendy Maudsley, who run the Littlebank herd in Rathmell. By the home-bred sire, Littlebank Ned, a Farouk De St Amand son, and out of another home-bred, Littlebank Kirsty, Rascal, a May, 2021-born natural calf, goes to Cumbria and Fell End, near Cockermouth, with Messrs Taylor and Gill.

Ribble Valley father and daughter, Garry and Heather Whalley, who run the Jaygar herd at Newton-in-Bowland, Clitheroe, took the reserve championship with their first prize maiden heifer, Jaygar Rhea, a May, 2021, daughter of Solway View Lucifer, bred in Dumfriesshire by Kevin Watret and male champion at both the Royal Highland and Royal Welsh 2018. By the home-bred Almeley Gilchrist daughter, Jaygar Menoestes, and from a family with excellent easy-calving EBVs, Rhea went under the hammer at 2,000gns, going to Les Driver, Oakenshaw, Bradford.

The Whalleys consigned five 2021-born females, all by Greystone bulls bred locally in Stainforth by brothers Graham and Alan Coates, a trio by Kilo, the 2020 British Blue Society 1st place stock bull, making 2,500gns, 2,300gns and 1,700gns, the other by Carbon also hitting 2,500gns.

A good day for the well-represented Whalleys was further boosted by sales of a brace of prize-winning June, 2021, bulls, both by another Coates sire, Greystone Governor and both out of home-bred dams, which were placed second and third in the junior bull class. The runner-up, Jaygar Rama, made 3,200gns, the third, Jaygar Rango, 2,900gns. Respective purchasers were Kirby Wold Farming, Kirby Grindalythe, Malton, and familiar face Tim Metcalfe, Clayton, Bradford.

Back with the older bulls, husband and wife Ken and Hazel Gamble, Linthorpe herd, Easingwold, took home the runners-up rosette with Linthorpe Rolo, a February, 2021, home-bred son of their well-utilised stock bull Homilton Jupiter, himself by Drift Domino. He made 3,400gns when joining Ian Barrett, Summerbridge, with the Gambles also selling a second 2021 Homilton Jupiter son, Linthorpe Reg, at 3,600gns to D Wise, Huddersfield.

With four-figure selling prices the order of the day – all the prize winners made well into this bracket – averages were impressive, bulls levelling at £3,932 and heifers at £2,678.