CHEESE makers have been showing their pride as Lancastrians as part of a new campaign.

The Say Cheese For Lancashire Day social media campaign saw Bashall Barn, based in Bashall Eaves in the Ribble Valley, help boost trade and tourism to the county.

The campaign from Marketing Lancashire to celebrate all things Lancastrian and to promote Lancashire Day, invited visitors as well as proud Lancastrians to share photographs or ‘selfies’ of themselves in locations across the county saying ‘cheese’ for Lancashire Day.

The images were shared through Twitter using the hashtag #Lancashireday, and via Facebook and Flickr. The campaign was promoted through visitlancashire.com and @visitlancashire and @touristboard twitter feeds.

During the month-long campaign visitlancashire.com received more than 100,000 unique visitors, a 70 per cent increase on November 2012.

It saw a steady stream of customers visit Bashall Barn Visitor Food Centre.

Managing director Simon Barnes said: “We celebrated Lancashire Day with a special Lancashire Food Producers’ Dinner in the restaurant, which showcased the best that Lancashire has to offer.

“It really was ‘Ready Steady Cook’ for the Bashall chefs, as ingredients came in from the across the county and were rapidly turned into pies, hot pots and loads of traditional Lancastrian dishes.

“It was washed down with some great Lancashire beer and finished off with a great selection of Lancashire cheese.”