With all the money now collected the sum of £7,720 will be distributed to worthwhile causes across Aberdeenshire, with the weekend's featured charity Marie Curie cancer care receiving a cheque for £3,500 earlier this week.

A firm favourite on the events calendar, the Vintage Working Weekend lets visitors experience how rural and industrial tasks were carried out in years gone by. The display features vintage vehicles farm equipment and military vehicles, working steam engines and steam driven engineering equipment.

A steam driven threshing mill showed how harvesting was revolutionised and there were also examples of steam driven forestry equipment. And no event featuring agriculture from the past would be complete without the popular "giants" of farming, Clydesdale horses.

The event also features an ever-increasing number of additional attractions for all the family and this year included a wide variety of stalls including auto jumble and a car boot sale. There are various activities for children including a Pirates Treasure Hunt, and a new feature this year that proved to be very popular was "Panning for Gold".

Event organiser Allan Brownie of BA Country Store has seen the event continue to grow in size and popularity every year, and has already earmarked the Panning for Gold for expansion next year due to its appeal to the crowds.

He also asked the Herald to pass on grateful thanks to all the exhibitors who attended and to the large numbers of the public who turned up ensuring local charities benefited.

Alan had to spend time in hospital prior to the event, so he told the Herald: "I'd also like to thank all the helpers who work so hard prior to and during the Working Weekend, without them the event wouldn't have gone ahead."

Michael Jamieson, Community Fundraising manager for Marie Curie Cancer Care said: "We're delighted to have received such a tremendous amount of money. It works out at 175 hours of nursing, so a lot of patients will be getting the benefit of that."