Crufts 2026

BIS Report: It was a great honour to judge a wonderful line-up of seven top dogs at the World’s Greatest dog show, carefully selected by their breed and Group judges. Thank you for the trust.

All the finalists excelled in their breed type, soundness, conformation, movement, and breed-typical character. It was impressive to see their connection with their human partners on the spectacular green carpet during their immaculate performance. At this top level, where the dogs have already been tested and evaluated by different experts, the decision can be made based on a few seconds assessment, such as, interpersonal communication with the dog, and the question ‘How many better specimens have I seen in the breed in question’ and how special is he/she?’

My Best in Show Winner was the Clumber Spaniel male,  Sh Ch Vanitonia Soloist. He immediately caught my attention entering the ring. He represents the real essence of the breed characteristics with a lovely, masculine head without any exaggerated features. He has an open, friendly, appealing character, and I haven’t seen a more sound mover in his breed in my long career.

He carried his substantial body around the ring with ease, strength and with a ‘smile’ on his face while he perfectly kept his topline, neck and head in a breed-typical way. He is an example that breed-type was created for the special function without being exaggerated.

A dog to remember for a lifetime. He kept his well-balanced, happy, attentive attitude even when the hall exploded with the cheering of the audience.

My Reserve Best in Show was the Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen female, Am/Cro/Fin/Int.Ch./WorldWinner24-25, European Winner 24-25, Black Majesty Some Say. A truly special representative of her breed in perfect breed-type, conformation and condition, attached to her handler in a very touching way with a very happy, relaxed coexistence. They moved, breathed and existed as one. She has a beautiful, feminine head and expression, an elegant but substantial body in rock-hard condition, and did not put a foot wrong during her performance. She gives a great example of why we breed and own functional, well-tempered dogs with healthy body and mindset, not only because of their original purpose, but to make our lives happier, creating the special comfort zone, that we could not have without a dog around us.

Congratulations to the owners of the Group Winners, Welsh Corgi Pembroke, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Tibetan Mastiff, Lakeland Terrier, and Miniature Schnauzer. It was a pleasure to go over these great representatives of their breeds and experience their exceptional qualities.

I congratulate the Cruft’s Committee for the great show they put together, and thank the large and great audience for the immense atmosphere that they created in the Arena!

Tamas Jakkel

Bruin wins the first RKC Crufts!

Another hectic four days of actually showing and activities have come and gone for Crufts 2026. Hardly any time to draw breath before the OUR DOGS team swings into action to record the win of Bruin the Clumber Spaniel, handled by owner Lee Cox, taking top spot, on Sunday night under top all-round international judge, Tamas Jakkel from Hungary, the President of the FCI. 

In the usual stunning setting of the main arena at the NEC, and beautifully staged and managed by Crufts Vice Chairman Nick Brookes Ward and his team, the best in show programme was completed without any interference from protestors of this, that or the other.

Our super seven dogs were a mixture of UK winners and top dogs from overseas, including the Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen from Croatia, who stormed into second spot to provide a 50/50 balance on the podium of UK and international winners! 

Lee Cox is a stalwart of the dog show scene, and his many friends in the world of dogs were as delighted to see his win on Sunday as Lee was shocked when Tamas Jakkel walked in his direction...a dream come true, as Lee said in a post-show interview with OUR DOGS. Lee talked of shows at Earls Court and looking over the balcony when Marita Gibbs was taking BIS back in the day!

Keeping up the tradition of an overseas dog taking one of the top two spots, we had Meghan, the PBGV, occupying the second place on the podium. The Croatian fan club was out in force as usual! Owner Iva Raic said with great emotion, “Dogs are the most magnificent and versatile animals on planet Earth. They give us their all; they are that last piece of the puzzle that every home needs. This is exactly what each and every dog is to me: Meghan, my beloved companion. I had so much fun in the ring; sharing this feeling inside and outside the ring is priceless.

Her retirement win felt like something out of this world. In a split second, I remembered every moment since she was born to this moment when we jumped on the podium. I want to thank my buddy for being exactly what they are - an irreplaceable part of our lives”

Meghan is not a stranger to top honours, having won the world show in Helsinki last August.

In fact, last year’s reserve best in show was also an overseas dog, the popular Tibetan Mastiff and that also underlined the fact that nearly 25% of the Crufts entry now comes from outside the UK…quite a development over the years. The Tibetans’ handler Gabriele Stafuzza joked, “It’s something speechless, but I’m starting to get used to and comfy on the podium! I can’t be prouder of Viking’s performance and his energy; he did great in the ring as usual. We love you, cucciolo!  I’m deeply grateful to my wife, Kristina Ermolaeva, for all the work she did with Viking and for all the support behind the scenes. Without her, it would not have been possible to achieve everything we did with Viking over the past 3 years. My best wishes go to Viking’s owners, the Molnar family, for trusting us in this fantastic adventure. The least but not the last during these days I feel all love and support from my crew members, Luigi Cocchi, Tania Gamboni, Simone Luca and Francesca Todone.

The Lakeland was from Malta and co-owned by Bill Browne Cole and Cara Davani, and then we had Brits winning with the Corgi, who will now be retired, the Mini Schnauzer, Dublin the Cavalier, also a past winner, and our group reporters have all the details of their wins in this report issue of  OUR DOGS.  

WHERE DO YOU BEGIN?

This time last year, I wrote, ‘Only 359 days to Crufts 2026!’and it’s now been and gone… so where do we start to give you an overview of this year’s spectacular four days?

As OUR DOGS leader has pointed out in this issue, this year’s Crufts featured a number of changes and new personnel…the well-oiled machine that is Crufts had a few twists and turns to negotiate. Hall 8 was one such development for YKC and also the new grooming competition, a major new addition to Crufts, delivered in partnership with Artero.

This is the first time professional grooming has taken centre stage at Crufts, with 185 dogs competing in Hall 8 across the four days.

There were five specialist categories: Poodles; Spaniels & Setters; Handstrip; Workshop (including Crossbreeds and Asian Style); and Pure Breed Scissor which were contested across four experience levels: Beginner, Intermediate, Open and Champion. Each class was judged by a panel of three experts, with the top Open and Champion winners progressing to the Best Groomer in Show finale on Sunday.

The Best Groomer in Show judged on Sunday 8 March was won by Hannah Rooney from Middlesborough with Frank, a Wire Fox Terrier in the Handstrip Champion Class. The final was judged by Melanie Winters-Holmes. The Reserve Best Groomer in Show was Rebecca Moores with Tonic (Standard Poodle), who won from the Poodle Champion class.

For the Juniors, or we have to say now the YRKC juniors (phew!), on balance, things seemed to go well. Overall, the majority of feedback from parents and competitors regarding the move to Hall 8 was positive. Many felt the hall worked well and appreciated the extra space around the benching area, although others thought it was a little detached from the main show. 

The Artero grooming competition being held in the hall was, I was told, a real positive, as it helped attract visitors and increase footfall. Without the grooming competition, particularly on Friday, when only grooming and obedience were running, the hall felt noticeably quieter.  While some visitors entered through Hall 8 due to car park routing, overall footfall was not as busy as when the YKC was in Hall 3. Some juniors commented that the atmosphere wasn’t quite the same as Hall 3, which has historically been busier and more established.

BREEDER STAKES 

The Breeders’ Competition final at Crufts is always spectacular with the main ring packed with teams. David Simms and Roxanne Simm’s team of Siberian Huskies won the ultimate breeder’s title, beating 39 other breeders who qualified for the final. The judge of the final, John Thirlwell, selected Arcticskies kennel for the prize as the breeders with the best overall quality evident in their dogs. Each team comprised three or four dogs of one breed, all bred by the same breeder or breeding partnership. The Reserve best breeder was awarded to Chris and Cheryl Satherley from Staffordshire, with their team of Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers, which they breed under the name Silkcroft. Thanks to Agria for their ongoing support also with OUR DOGS.

TRADE STANDS AND SHOPPING 

We often hear the phrase that Crufts is a trade show with dogs, and this year was no exception. Removing the juniors from Hall 3 created space for other things, but removed a popular ring with dogs. So, in effect, all of Halls 3 and 3 A had just two event rings and, of course, Discover Dogs running along the length at the side of the hall. Swing into Hall 2 or Hall 4, and you are met with more trade stands before you eventually reach the breed rings. Just saying…….

Many stands had pre-show issues, were moved around for no apparent reason, and incurred increased costs. At the show, some very pushy trade stand staff selling dog food or subscriptions were VERY annoying. Also, it seemed very cold in several halls, with trade stand staff wearing coats! Even the collecting ring was chilly. ‘Too many non-doggy stands’ was another comment, and not enough support and recognition for the hardy band of regular traders that support the dog show scene. OUR DOGS included! Not everyone can be a multinational with a big budget! 

PRESS COVERAGE

OUR DOGS spoke to the RKC Press team, who told us that, “Our radio and television presence grew from 6.1 million listening hours last year to 52 million this year. For the first time, we achieved coverage on every BBC radio channel across the UK.

Across the media landscape, we secured more than 13,000 pieces of coverage up from 3,500 in 2025. We also reached 91 Tier 1 UK national media outlets, including the BBC, The Times and The Daily Telegraph. We also gained 16,069 new social media followers over the last four days, with our 254 social media posts and videos getting nearly 8 million views and shared 94,130 times”

Quite a reach.

I cannot move on, however, without a supportive word for our international press colleagues who have covered Crufts for many years, as they do for World and European events. The dog show fraternity is a fellowship, and there is camaraderie among the dog show press and the world dog press members. The many changes in press facilities and relationships have left some feeling less than welcome this year, and it is hoped things can be improved going forward. They are skilled photographers of dogs and have their role to play as well. The erection of a 2.5-metre-high wall, which cut the press room in half, was, shall we say, unusual this year! 

There had been a lot of pre-show hype and PR, but at the time of going to press, the gate figures seemed to be roughly the same as in other years, around 150,000. OUR DOGS have asked for more specific numbers when ready.

WHAT ELSE?

We had the KC President, Prince Michael, in attendance and receiving his new RKC President’s badge from Ian Seath at the Chairman’s lunch on Thursday. Various new celebrities flitting around, and of course, a presenting crew of 5 for Channel 4 nowadays, hopefully attracting more paying customers for next year. 

Ian Seath had a busy schedule himself, trying to visit and see as many aspects of the show as possible. One part of his role, and that of the CEO, Jannine Edgar, was to meet with MP’s attending the show and ensuring the breeders point of view is well represented in Parliament 

The RKC also launched its much-vaunted Crufts club and had posters all around the show and we await to see the take up.

Ann Zoutous again made a lovely painting of the previous year’s winner.

The International Junior handler title went to the UK for the first time in many years. 

17-year-old junior handler Megan Slack with a Japanese Shiba Inu called Delphine (Vormund Camp Crystal Lake) won the Joe Cartledge Memorial International Junior Handling final. The British pair were awarded first place on Friday evening, in the bp pulse LIVE arena, by judge Adrian Hili, from Malta. This is the first time the UK has won this competition since 1995 when Tamara Dawson won.

Runner-up was as 16-year-old Maria Flores Ribeiro, from Portugal, handling a Hungarian Vizsla called River (Oroshaza Iren at Cazadorado), and third place was Nowd Vaazen, representing Belgium, also handling a Hungarian Vizsla called Bebe (Ir Sh Ch Oroshaza Be Be at Cazadorado JW). Other countries which made the top ten included Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands and Slovenia. 36 junior handlers from around the world and aged between 11 and 19 years old took part in the prestigious final, which showcased their handling skills and breed expertise with a dog they only met that morning.

YKC FINALS

Maisie Allenby aged 17 from Shropshire, and Dustin (Ch Ryazan Viceroy of Radost at Menigma ShCEx), a six-year-old Borzoi, won the YRKC Stakes finals. Qualifying classes were held at championship shows across the UK in 2025, and Maisie and Dustin beat six other talented young handlers and their dogs to be crowned the winner of the YRKC Stakes competition 

Runner up was Dearbhla Nugent, aged 15 from County Amagh, Northern Ireland, and Didi, a six-year-old Weimaraner (Sh Ch/Ir Sh Ch/Int Ch Callanbanks Dervlas Dream.)

AND FINALLY……….

So, all over for another year for the hard-working Crufts Chairman Tom Mather and his team, including all the helpers and volunteers, as Tom always mentions at the after-show event.

As for the Crufts aftermath and social media hysteria, past Best in Show winner Rebecca Cross summed it all up by saying, “Someone posted, ‘Why would anyone want to win Crufts when you just get ripped as the reward?’ While I totally relate to the typical animal rights response, we must not let them win.  Turn off social media, shut off Facebook… come back in a week, and it’s all gone.”

Congrats to the Winner! At the end of the day, it’s all about the dog!

Boris Pegan, an international journalist and dog grooming judge and groomer, commented on the post-show social media as well, saying, “Online bullying within the dog world has become a serious and growing problem. Facebook groups and comment sections are increasingly used as platforms for attacking competitors and colleagues rather than supporting them. This culture of public criticism not only damages reputations but also discourages newcomers and younger enthusiasts who might otherwise fall in love with the sport. 

This message needs to be taken on board, and people need to take a positive message away from Crufts, where thousands of people enjoyed the dogs, the activities, the multi-disciplines…and let’s build our community back up again…with kindness, as Ian Seath had announced sometime ago

Amen to that, and don’t forget it’s only 359 days to Crufts 2027!

PHOTO GALLERY:

• Best in Show Photos
• Simone Luca Photography
• Ellen Higginbottom - Dawnsafon Dog Snaps

Best in Show Photos

Best in Show Photos

Best in Show Photos

Best in Show Photos

Best in Show Photos

Best in Show Photos

Simone Luca Photography

Simone Luca Photography

Simone Luca Photography

Simone Luca Photography

Simone Luca Photography

Simone Luca Photography

Ellen Higginbottom - Dawnsafon Dog Snaps