Meet the Yorkshire champion cattle breeders whose bulls have starred in All Creatures Great and Small

Mark and Tracy Severn are the proud owners of a Beef Shorthorn herd that has surpassed all their expectations since getting into the breed 14 years ago. They’ve had champion bulls and breed champions at the Royal Highland Show and Great Yorkshire Show and champion heifer at Harrogate too.

Mark said that this year is a very special time for both the Beef Shorthorn and Dairy Shorthorn as the Shorthorn World Conference comes to the UK. Mark is part of the organisational committee.

“It is 200 years since George Coates produced the world’s first pedigree herdbook for Shorthorn cattle in 1822 and in recognition of it, the Great Yorkshire Show has set aside 200 places split between the beef and dairy this year.

“It’s always well attended because our National Beef Shorthorn Show is always held at the show, but this year will be extra special and there will hopefully be events including teams of beef and dairy animals and a dinner held at the Pavilions of Harrogate on the showground.

“All being well, Covid restrictions permitting, it will be a 13-day conference that can be extended to 21 days with additional farm visits, and we are hopeful of somewhere between 80-100 delegates from all around the world along with many from the UK.”

Mark said he is making the journey to Stirling Bull Sales once again this year, next weekend, but this time to help out a friend rather than buying or selling.

“Stirling Bull Sales is an amazing spectacle. The sales are held over two weeks with 500 bulls for sale each weekend. It’s a great advertisement for British farming and genetics. The most nervous moment is when you have taken a bull and are waiting for the bull inspection to take place. You pray that your animal is going to get through.

“The bull is the most important part of your herd and I don’t mind spending good money on good genetics. I’m not going there to buy this time, but there’s an old adage that you’ve to buy a bull when you see a bull, not when you want a bull, so who knows?

“This time I’m taking a bull for a friend who has suffered with Covid this past year. I said I’d clip and show him for him. We’ve nothing to sell ourselves as we sold what we had privately and had a good trade.”

Tracy said she hates selling the bulls. “It destroys me. I will not go to Stirling but sometimes I will watch the sale online. If I hear Mark bidding I’ll be on my phone trying to get him to stop.”

Mark and Tracy’s most successful bull so far has been Millerston Jester who they bought as a calf from breeder Jack Ramsay.

Jester won at the Royal Highland and Great Yorkshire, was never beaten and became a TV star in the first series of the new All Creatures Great and Small when he appeared at a local agricultural show. His grandson, Highlee Percy Pickle, appeared in the second series.

Tracy said that although they had a fantastic time with Jester their sweetest moment so far has been winning at the Great Yorkshire with their own homebred heifer Highlee Kinder Rose.

“Kinder Rose was breed champion in 2019. When you win at Harrogate with your own breeding stock, that’s the best.”

Tracy said the die was cast many years ago over their showing future.

“We started showing with friends not long after we came here 21 years ago. We’d lived in a semi-detached house in Shibden and had taken on this house because it had buildings where we could store our equipment for machinery moving, which is still our day job.

“The farm next door came up for sale and then we started with cows. I’d asked Mark for some for my 40th birthday. I told him I’d seen some brown cows down the road and to find out what they were because I liked the look of them. They were Beef Shorthorns.

“We bought a couple from an auction and another couple from Andrew Thornber who had the cows I’d seen. We borrowed his bull Vulcan of Upsall, started showing him, and he never went back. Vulcan was an absolute babe, a huge bull. I still miss him now. He was Todmorden Show champion, our first ever show, and was second at the Great Yorkshire Show.”

The Severns have a herd of 39 cows, heifers and calves and have 21 set to calve starting in about two weeks. They will be hoping for yet more homebred success and have two bulls to watch out for, either for their breeding or at shows – Coldrochie Lief and Sandwick Noteabull, both bought as bull calves.