Organisers hail this year's Cox Green Village Show as 'best show' since pandemic 

Organisers of the newly renamed Cox Green Village Show said this year’s event was ‘very successful’ and are hoping to make it ‘bigger and better next year’.

The event, formerly known as the Cox Green Horticultural and Craft Show, opened to the public at Cox Green Community Centre on Saturday afternoon.

The long-standing event dates back to 1908, when the first ever show took place.

This year, organisers decided to rename the event to the Cox Green Village Show, to make it shorter and ‘easier to say’.

Saturday’s show attracted almost 400 entrants across a range of adults and children’s classes.

These includes flowers and pot plants, art, photography, handicrafts, baking, cake-making and fruit and vegetables.

The limerick competition returned for another year, with this year's theme being VE/VJ Day – the 80th anniversary.

Following judging earlier in the day, visitors were welcomed in from 2.30pm to view the entries, displayed on tables across two rooms in the centre.

There was also an opportunity to enter and help judge the new ‘people’s choice’ class, which called for entries of ‘an unframed photograph of an animal’.

More than 250 guests attended throughout the afternoon to see the exhibits, which also showcased the first and second prize entries in the Heaviest Marrow class.

Martin Little, chairman of the Cox Green Village Show committee, said attendance has ‘gradually been building up’ following the COVID-19 pandemic, and was ‘a lot higher than the last couple of years’.

“This is probably the best show we’ve had since COVID-19,” he added.

The tables featured a range of items including tomatoes, pumpkins, onions, plants, flowers, cakes, photographs and crochet pieces.

There were a number of stalls selling handmade goods and arts and crafts items, including printed cards and colourful canvas bags.

Guests could pick up local honey and handmade items from Sherwood Huntley.

Mary Wheeler was selling handmade crafts and Asma Omar was also in attendance with Zoyu handmade.

The Townswomen’s Guild was on hand to provide plenty of teas and cakes for visitors to enjoy throughout the afternoon.

A market stall was also selling homegrown produce and cakes, and raffle tickets were also on sale. 

Guests also got to enjoy a ballet performance from children’s dance group Ethereal.

Maidenhead’s MP Josh Reynolds toured the exhibits and handed out cups and awards to the winners.

In his speech, he said: “I always enjoy being able to come out and do stuff like this.

“Being able to come to community events, being able to see our town at its best.

“This really is what we as Maidenhead do so absolutely brilliantly.”

He added: “It’s a fantastic committee – Martin and the brilliant team that put it together to make sure that stuff like this can happen.

“And everybody who enters – from the young people who manage to do all the fantastic arts and crafts, to all of the fantastic food that’s been able to be prepared.

“It really is brilliant to be able to come and talk about this today and be able to present the prizes.”

Silvia Little, a member of the committee for Cox Green Village Show, said: “I think the entries were very good.

“I think that’s the good thing with Cox Green – I think [with] the entries, the standard is always very, vey high.

“You have the people who come all the time, but we noticed this year - new faces, new names, and that’s what we try to promote, and that's what we try to encourage."

Martin added: “It’s been a good year for apples and fruit and tomatoes, and the kale which won a cup – that was really good.”

“We’re really pleased,” Silvia said.