COUNTRY show organisers have denied that a horseback hunting group cancelled their appearance over concerns about spreading disease.

Animal welfare campaign The League Against Cruel Sports put out an announcement yesterday saying The Kimblewick Hunt had withdrawn its hound parade scheduled for Thame Show on Thursday following concerns about the risk of bovine tuberculosis being spread to livestock.

The League said it had raised the alarm after the Kimblewick Hunt was forced to put down 97 of its hounds in 2016 because of an outbreak of bovine TB at its kennels.

However Karoline Thorpe, one of the Thame Show organising team, told the Oxford Mail yesterday that the hunt had pulled out of its display for entirely different reasons, and not because of pressure from the show.

She said: “They were going to do something but they’re not now, they’re far too busy.”

Among the group’s other commitments, she said, was being involved in filming for ITV series Endeavour this week.

This year’s Thame Horse & Country Show, which describes itself as ‘England’s greatest agricultural show’ will feature a ‘laser gun clay shooting range’, a bird display, an alpaca display, showjumping, a dog show, classic cars and a Champagne cave bar.

For full details and to buy tickets see thameshow.co.uk