Celebrity chef James Martin will be adding culinary flair to The Game Fair VIP experience when the three-day festival of the great British countryside returns.

Over the past 21 years James has presented some of the most popular cooking shows on TV and published 18 best-selling books.

Passionate about food and sourcing the very best ingredients, he can be found behind the stoves at James Martin Manchester and The Kitchen at the acclaimed Chewton Glen. Once again this year, he will also be cooking up a storm at The Game Fair at Hatfield House, Hertfordshire from Friday, July 26 to Sunday, July 28.

Fresh from his most recent series ‘James Martin’s Great British Adventure,’ James will be cooking for package holders within the prestigious Game Fair Enclosure. The menu will feature game and sustainably-sourced produce from the British countryside.

Outside of the kitchen James is a massive dog lover and owns two dogs, Ralph and Cooper. He is currently training Cooper as a full working gundog under the expert guidance of trainer Jason Mayhew.

Born in Malton, North Yorkshire, and raised on a farm, James is a country lad, born and bred.

“My passion for food began when my father took the role of catering manager at the Castle Howard estate,” he said. “It is a great privilege to be returning as the celebrity chef at such a prestigious countryside event as The Game Fair. I love the British countryside, a source of so many natural flavours which inspire creativity in the kitchen. I look forward to creating this year’s menu.”

The fair, which has been running since 1958, attracted around 113,000 visitors last year.

This year the show will also give visitors the chance to see more than 20 gundog breeds under one roof.

Headed up for the fifth consecutive year by gundog breeder and trainer Neil Rice, the pavilion will feature familiar favourites and some more unusual breeds.

Neil said: “This year we will have examples of all the main gundog groups - retrievers, spaniels, setters and HPRs (Hunt, Point, Retrieve).

“Visitors will get a chance to see some of the stalwarts of the English sporting scene. We will have a wide variety of minor and venerable breeds, as well as some breeds usually only seen working on the continent, including, this year for the first time, the Lagotto Romagnolo from northern Italy.”

The gundogs will all be accompanied by their experienced owners, handlers and breeders, giving visitors to The Game Fair a chance to learn about how they work and understand their temperament and characteristics. Some of the dogs will also be taking part in various competitions and demonstrations in the Working Dog Ring.

An active and enthusiastic participant in fieldsports for over 40 years as a keen game shooter and deerstalker, Neil works on a large shooting estate in the Midlands and runs his own fieldsports photography business too.

He added: “This is my fifth year of looking after the Sporting Dog Pavilion and each year we strive to give our visitors a wonderful opportunity to understand how the dogs that accompany us in the shooting field not only make our sports possible but also provide us with that truly loyal companionship that can really brighten up our lives.”

James Gower, managing director of The Game Fair, said: “The Sporting Dog Pavilion has always been a big hit with families, especially those considering buying their first dog. There are few other places where you can see so many different breeds under one roof and learn from the experts.”

Hatfield House, Great North Road, Hatfield, Friday, July 26 to Sunday, July 28. Details: thegamefair.org 0844 776 7777