It began in 1985 and is now the largest annual event of its type in Sydney's Northern District, attracting over 80,000 people each year.
For the first time in the Festival's 22-year history, it was officially opened by the (then) local Member of parliament, Prime minister John Howard.
There were speculations that his appearance was largely due to the emergence of a serious challenge towards not just his Coalition government, but indeed his very own parliamentary seat of Bennelong, from high-profile ALP candidate Maxine McKew.
Apart from Howard and McKew, a number of other local politicians, along with hundreds of volunteers representing numerous political parties and interest groups, attended the Festival, with a large contingent of media crew following their campaign trails.
The 2008 Granny Smith Festival was of important significance with the Ryde by-election being held on the same day, Saturday October 18.