The Welsh Game Fair to have new home at Powys estate

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) has announced that the next leg of the fair will be at the Glanusk Estate in the Black Mountains.

This event which describes itself as “a celebration of the Welsh countryside” is moving from the Vaynol Estate in Bangor, Gwynedd, to Glanusk Park near Crickhowell in the Usk Valley and will be known as The GWCT Welsh Game Fair at Glanusk.

The Welsh Game Fair will take place over the weekend of 8-9 June 2024 and is “championing rural life and people, businesses, skills, traditions and country activities seen and practiced throughout the whole of Wales” and hopes to showcase “the enormous variety our wonderful country has to offer”.

Glanusk Park and the river Usk at dawn. (Image: Glanusk Estate)

The Glanusk Park and Estate is one of the largest privately owned Estates in Wales and is owned and run by Harry Legge-Bourke.

Situated in the beautiful countryside of the Usk Valley, it has been in the ownership of the same family since 1826 when the South Wales Ironmaster, Sir Joseph Bailey, purchased the original site and built a mansion house there.

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The estate consists of 400 acres of private parkland, 800 acres of forestry, 2,000 acres of lowland and hill farms, the Park and forestry, 12,000 acres of Common Land hills and 5 miles of the river Usk.

“The Glanusk Estate has a long tradition of hosting great events in the heart of the Black Mountains, as far back as 1976 with the original ‘Game Fair’,” said Mr Legge-Bourke, owner of Glanusk Estate.

“We are delighted to be hosting this very important event, not just for those throughout Wales but for the thousands of visitors to Wales from the UK and overseas.

“This event is a real showcase to the diversity of the Welsh countryside and those who live, breath, work and cherish this great place.

“We will endeavor to make all our guests coming to Glanusk feel more than welcome as they enjoy the exhibits, demonstrations, shopping, activities and much, much more.”

Fishing in the river Usk is one of the many countryside activities enjoyed on the Glanusk Estate (Image: Glanusk Estate)

The team at Glanusk have taken on a 10-year license to operate the Welsh Game Fair and have teamed up with the GWCT to deliver this event.

Lee Oliver, GWCT Director of Wales, said: “We are extremely proud and excited to be working with Harry and the Glanusk Estate to bring this event to even more people from across Wales, and further afield.

“We want to see a Welsh countryside that is thriving, rich in game and wildlife, and supportive of everyone who lives and works in it. This is the perfect way to show off what it has to offer and why it is important to look after it and preserve it for generations to come.”