AN ANGUS effort to put the ‘cool’ back into the countryside attracted thousands of visitors at the weekend.

Organisers of Scotland’s Countryside Festival at Glamis Castle said glorious weather helped to lift visitor figures for its third outing in succession.

Tony Andrews, chief executive of the Scottish Countryside Alliance, an event partner, hailed the event a success and said it provided a solid foundation for even more growth.

“Last year we had 13,600 people here and this year that has gone up again, but it’s too early to say by how much,” he said. “I think it has been a tremendous success. It is more than I had hoped for and the eye-opener for me has been the number of children here.

“We want young people to think of the countryside, and not just cities, as a cool place to live and work in. This is part and parcel of what we are doing here in re-engaging Scots with their countryside.”

He said it had become clear there are folk alienated from the countryside by urban living, people who think the countryside is inaccessible, expensive and run by landowners for their own ends.

“We aim to show them some of the things going on outside the towns and cities in terms of leisure activities and country sports and what makes the countryside tick culturally and economically,” Mr Andrews said. “We are reaching them, as last year more than half of those who came here had never attended a countryside event before.

“They are coming here to see the Devil’s Horsemen equestrian team perform their stunts and then get to see terriers, they have the chance to shoot and can cast a fly.”

Mr Andrews said as the event had reached its third milestone, it will now be evaluated, with organisers looking at achievements to date and examining where it goes from here.

He revealed plans to expand the educational aspect of the weekend and, next year, he wants to showcase rural cultures, such as story-telling and music, with a folk music concert being looked at.

The four pillars of the countryside will be the key elements—the economy, environment, communities and cultures.

Mr Andrews believes the festival will become the biggest event, other than the Royal Highland Show, celebrating the Scottish countryside. “There is scope for this to bring in 30,000 people a year, but it could be bigger than that.”