For the first time ever, a Beltex scooped the prestigious inter-breed sheep honours at the Royal Highland Show, when Woodies Citygirl, a gimmer from Aberdeenshire breeders, Stuart Wood and Stasa Moyse, was presented the red, white and blue sash.

Judge Jimmy Sinclair, Heriot, said his choice of champion was a good commercial animal with that extra touch of class.

"All the breed winners were champions in their own right, but the Beltex had all the commercial traits we look for at home. She was correct, had a great skin and carcase and she was also sparky. She ticked all the boxes," said Mr Sinclair, who found his r.eserve in the champion Bleu Du Maine Supreme overall was a previously unshown gimmer from the couple's 32-ewe flock from Woolhillock, Skene, Aberdeenshire. A daughter of Carrigans Bobleeswagger, a tup bought privately at Carlisle, in partnership with the Kingledores flock, in 2016, she is bred from an imported ewe and former champion winner in Belgium.

The Bleu Du Maine result was also a best ever achievement here for the breed and for owner, William Baillie, who owns the Calla flock at Covington Mill, Thankerton. His triumph came with a previously unshown home-bred gimmer by Maximum Obama, a tup bought at Carlisle, in 2016, out of a home-bred ewe.

Keeping it in the family, both amongst the sheep and the exhibitors, William's brother, Andrew who farms at Carstairs Mains, Carstairs, scooped the second reserve with his commercial champion, a home-bred Millennium Bleu gimmer.

Best male was Willie Thomson and his father Jimmy's hill Cheviot champion, from Hownam Grange, Kelso. This was Newbank Spitfire, a four-shear ram bred by Hugh and Sandy Wilson, that was purchased at Lockerbie in 2016 for £8000 and has already scooped several breed championships.

For full report and pictures see this week's Scottish Farmer on Friday