Lairg Sale 2025

Lairg North Country Cheviot Sale Smashes Records

The annual Sale of North Country Cheviot Hill Tups and Females took place at Lairg Auction Mart on Monday 6th October. Returning to a single-day format for the first time since 2020, the mart’s two rings were bustling throughout with buyers and spectators alike.

Records were well and truly broken, with the highest-ever average achieved for North Country Cheviots — 254 tups sold to average £2071.92. Breeders were delighted, as the best sheep consistently drew top bids, and commercial demand remained strong across the board.

Top price of the day was £20,000, achieved twice.

First to reach the figure was Kintail Extra Special, sired by Allanshaws Ben Nevis — the ram purchased in half shares by Graeme MacRae (Kintail) and Scott Renwick (Inverbroom) in 2022 for a then-centre record of £12,000 at Dingwall. After spirited bidding, Extra Special was knocked down to D.I. Rock, Hethpool, Wooler.

Amazingly, the second to make the same money was another son of Allanshaws Ben Nevis. Brought out by Scott Renwick, Inverbroom Executive headed to the Borders with Pete Tweedie, Buchtrig, Jedburgh.

The MacRae family’s success continued, selling two more five-figure tups, both similarly bred. Kintail Eagle realised £16,000 and stays in the North with Joyce Campbell, Armadale, while Kintail Eye Catcher sold to Achentoul Farms Ltd, Kinbrace.

The Inverbroom pen also impressed, with a further three tups by the same sire. Two reached £14,000 — Inverbroom E05046 and Inverbroom E05035, heading south to the Borders with W.N. Douglas, Whitehope, Yarrow and J.F. Irving, Benger, Yarrow respectively. Their fifth, Inverbroom Earl, made £7,000, selling to A.J. Beaton, Gesto, Straun. The five tups averaged a remarkable £11,200.
In total, ten tups by Allanshaws Ben Nevis, bred between the Kintail and Inverbroom flocks, grossed £108,300.

Next in line was Robbie Stevenson, Orkney, who made the long journey south well worthwhile. His shearling, Backakelday Foreman, a son of Tournaig C00636, sold for £18,000 to Andrew Elliot, Balnakeil, Durness, while Backakelday Frontier, bred the same way, made £9,000 to Hugh Mackenzie, Badanloch.

Another five-figure call came at £14,000 for Whitehope Earthquake from W.N. Douglas, Whitehope, a son of Susigill Vanguard, sold in half shares to W.W. Dunlop, Commonside, Hawick and Sorbietrees Farm Ltd, Newcastleton, with the same home, selling early in the sale, Whitehope Einstein who received £9,000 from Badanloch LLP, he was a son of Attonburn Bonnie Lad, who himself made a breed record of £28,000 at Lairg in 2022.

The Badanloch team followed with an outstanding pen. Their top, Badanloch Dynamo, sired by Stouphill Ambassador (bought at Lairg in 2021 for £24,000), realised £13,000 to Martyn Cook, Dorrery, Halkirk. Another, Badanloch Dazzler, also by Ambassador, sold for £10,000 to Bob & Kay Adams, Auldallan, Newhouse of Glamis who also purchased Badanloch Devilment sired by Auldallan Special Blend for £7500. While a fourth, Badanloch Double Diamond, sired by North Loch Naver Burglar, made £9,000 to Bob & Becca Rennie, Attonburn, Kelso.

In all, the Badanloch pen of ten three-shears averaged £5,670.

Martyn Cook’s Dorrery flock also saw excellent returns. His pen leader, Dorrery E07625, a Badanloch Tourist son, realised £10,000 to Ted Fox, St Johns Kirk, Lanarkshire, who also secured Dorrery E07641, an Inkstack Crask son, for £6,000.
Two further tups hit £8,000 — Dorrery E07660, to Jan Mackenzie, Langdale, and Dorrery E07646, to J.S. & L. Adams, Lochgilphead, both sired by Inkstack Crask.
The Dorrery pen averaged £6,350 for eight sold.

Selling at Lairg for the first time, David and Ian Walker, Alticane, made a strong debut, receiving £8,000 for Alticane Explorer, an Alticane Cracker son who heads south to Oli Harrison, Aimhaugh, Alston, Cumbria. The same home sold another, Alticane Eagle, sired by Portmore Benson, for £4,000 to join the Brackside flock of W. Sutherland, Caithness — who in turn sold their first in the ring, Brackside Envison sired by Whitehope Apollo, later in the day for £6,500 to Achentoul Farms Ltd, Kinbrace.

The female section also met with strong demand earlier in the day. Gimmers sold to a top of £470 for a pen of five outstanding entries from Michael Kirk’s Hollandmake flock, all sired by Mowhaugh Constrictor.

Ewes reached a top of £250 for a pair of Black North Country Cheviots from Murdo and Heather Macdonald, while registered white ewes topped at £245 for a pen of 40 from Achentoul Farms Ltd, Kinbrace, managed by Murdo Macdonald.