The sound of shotguns rang out across Ragley Hall in Warwickshire on Friday morning for the opening ceremony of the 63rd year of The Game Fair.

The annual gun salute was led by film star Vinnie Jones and other notable luminaries from the world of country pursuits and used as an opportunity to thank the Marques of Hertford for lending his estate to the landmark event.

Later in the day The Princess Royal flew in to enjoy a tour of the show spending time with British Association for Shooting & Conservation before presenting the inaugural Prince Philip Distinguished Service Awards.

Across the three days more than 120,000 visitors attended matching a record set last year when The Game Fair demonstrated its resilience by opening just a few days after lockdown as one of just few outdoor shows to go ahead. James Gower, managing director for The Game Fair commented: “Last year was exceptional welcoming crowds on an unprecedented scale. We were not sure entirely sure what to expect this year and to have repeated it is a reflection of the country’s passion for the countryside, rural businesses and its culture. Visitors are not ‘day-outers’ they are the stakeholders of the countryside, and they were here in droves to support it and celebrate.”

More than £60m is thought to have been spent at the show with millions more due to be conducted later as a result of it. Visitor Dr Emma Haynes, who attended The Game Fair with her husband Andy, commented:” We’ve had a fabulous day. We’ve bought a shotgun, a scope and various other bits. We’re going to leave before Andy buys a tractor!”

Another visitor, Lisa Frost, said: “We’ve all had a brilliant day, my nine-year-old son Henry shot at things, climbed things, fished for things, patted lots of dogs, learned about bees, ate lots of food, fell in love with gundogs, bravely showed off with the hunt hounds, learned about shotguns at Holland & Holland and generally had a ball!”

Gunmaker John Rigby & Co. has been exhibiting for many years. Managing director Marc Newton commented: “The Game Fair has been absolutely brilliant. The crowd has been very diverse, with visitors from both the UK and abroad, which is great to see again after the restrictions brought about by the pandemic. We’ve taken quite a few orders and there’s been a great vibe around our stand, which is what we set out to achieve.”

Felicity Hirschfield, head of marketing at INEOS Grenadier, commented: “This is our second visit to The Game Fair. Last year we had one car and a small stand, but this year we’ve had a much bigger presence. We’ve been non-stop, packed, all day every day, with a complete mix of potential and existing customers – that tells us we’re in the right place.”

Liam Stokes, chief executive officer at British Game Assurance, added: “It’s been fantastic on our stand and to be part of the discussions there and elsewhere about the hot topics of the day, like lead ammunition. One of the highlights has been our auditors talking face-to-face with gamekeepers wanting to know how best to prepare for their audit. The amount of enthusiasm we’ve had for the game we’ve been giving out has been positive, too.”

Stuart Yates, events manager at Fairfax & Favor, commented: “We’ve launched our new boot collaboration with Le Chameau, L’Alliance, which has gone down really well. A lot of influencers came by. The stand has been absolutely packed and you couldn’t move at times, but it’s been good to see so many people enjoying the brand.”

Aboo Cattran, director at Sportsman Gun Centre, added: “It’s our first time back in four years and it’s been a really good fair. The infrastructure is amazing, while signage and road access have been fantastic – it’s probably been one of the best laid out fairs ever. We’re enamored with it and it’s great to be back and show people what we do.”