Ulster Siamese & All Breed Cat Club ShowGCCF cat show in Northern Ireland

About the event

The Ulster Siamese & All Breed Cat Club and GCCF Support Ulster hold their shows together at Hillsborough Village Centre, 7 Ballynahinch Road. The show is listed in the official calendar of the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy (GCCF), the registry of pedigree cats founded in 1910.

As an all breed show, it welcomes many different pedigree breeds rather than just one, and GCCF shows usually also have classes for household pets, where cats are judged on condition and temperament rather than a breed standard.

At GCCF shows the public is normally admitted in the middle of the day until closing time at around 5pm. The cats sit in identical wire pens with a white blanket so that judges cannot tell whose cat is whose. Judges in white coats move round the hall with their stewards, take the cats out one at a time and write their results in a book; slips with the results appear on the results board later in the day.

Pens usually run in rows, starting with Persians and ending with Siamese, and the household pet section may be in a different part of the hall. A catalogue gives information about the cats, their breeds and colours, and exhibitors are often happy to talk about their breed once judging is over.

Entries for exhibitors closed on 2 November, so the show is now for visitors.