EXCITEMENT is mounting as a Bewdley farmer and his daughter prepare to put on a show of rare heavy horses.

Mike Clarke, 55, and his daughter Alison have been breeding Suffolk Punch heavy horses for five years and are set to hold their first show in Trimpley on Sunday.

The beasts, which are on the Rare Breeds Survival List, are rarer than the Chinese panda.

And Mr Clarke and his daughter have 17 out of the 276 registered Suffolk Punches in the UK.

The agricultural contractor, who started farming when he left school, said he hoped 25 to 30 Suffolk Punches would be at this weekend's show, from as far afield as Dorset and East Anglia where the breed originates. He added the event at Bite Farm, which neighbours his own Holbeache Farm, would also feature a car boot sale and a display of vintage machinery, including 30 horse-drawn carts.

Cash raised by the spectacle, which has also been combined with a vintage rally by Bridgnorth Vintage Club, will go to a Trimpley church, Air Ambulance and the Suffolk Punch Society.

The farmer, whose present stud contains two stallions, 10 mares, one gelding, a two-year-old filly and three foals born this year, said his main reason for choosing to breed Suffolk Punch was their position on the Rare Breeds Survival List.

He added he had always been interested in heavy horses and hoped to display them on the show circuit.

"This is the first time we're having a show and we're hoping for a good attendance because there seems to be an awful lot of interestt," he said.

"It's hard to say how many visitors we're expecting because it's our first show, but it could be anything from 20 to 20,000."

The Birmingham-born man, who farms mainly beef cattle, added: "We're trying to make it a good day out for the family."

More information can be obtained by calling Mr Clarke on 07831 674018.