Yorkshire Day pride shines through as region creates symphony of celebration

Highlights included the Great York Maze Straw Bale Race which involved competitors trying to do a 100m sprint while pushing a huge bale of straw.

Yorkshire Day, first celebrated in 1975 by the Yorkshire Riding Society, has become a festival of traditions associated with the county.

As an added bonus yesterday a 15-minute symphony for the region involving more than 200 musicians was broadcast by four BBC local radio stations simultaneously at 11am.

Benjamin Till's work took five months to produce, and put to music lyrics written by 98-year-old great-grandmother Doreen Brigham, from Harrogate.

Musicians included a Sheffield brass band, Colombian drummers from Leeds, the York Minster carillon player and a harpist from Haworth.

Yorkshire flags flew from public buildings, and markets celebrated traditional crafts and local fare. Taste buds were tickled by a variety of dishes – including Yorkshire pud – and beverages to toast the White Rose celebrations.

Barnsley's award-winning Acorn Brewery brewed up Yorkshire Pride in honour of the occasion. Premier regional pub company Market Town Taverns of Knaresborough, hosted the special cask ale across its 10 pubs.

A survey was conducted by Visit York to celebrate the opening of its 900,000 Visitor Information Centre in York.

It revealed Yorkshire pudding was named as the best thing to come out of York, followed by Yorkshire tea and Wensleydale cheese.

Dame Judi Dench came out top as most popular person – closely followed by the Bront sisters, Captain James Cook and Michael Palin.