Scuttlebrook wake

Chipping Campden, Cotswolds - 3rd June 2006

The day following the Cotswolds Olimpicks sees the opening of the Scuttlebrook Wake, which is a procession of the Scuttlebrook May Queen from Littleworth to the centre of town. She is pulled on her cart by the Chipping Campden Morris Men and accompanied by her four attendants and a page boy. Locals follow behind dressed in fancy dress. When she arrives in the Square, the queen is crowned and then presents prizes to the follower with the best fancy dress. After this, local schoolchildren entertain the crowds with maypole dancing and country dancing, followed by another performance by the Morris Men.

For the rest of the afternoon and evening, it's all the fun of the fair in Chipping Campden. The sound of the fairground organ mingles with the strident music of the rides, and there are candyfloss, brandy snaps and hot dogs to munch on as old friends who have returned for the fair mingle. Scuttlebrook has an atmosphere all of its own and people come from miles around to enjoy this annual event.

York cycle of mystery plays

Museum Gardens, York - Summer 2008

The Mystery Plays are cycles of plays in English verse dramatizing key Biblical stories from the Creation to the Last Judgement. Full cycles of 48 plays still survive from York and are re-enacted annually. The mystery plays date back from about 1340 and form the most complete cycle of medieval drama still in existence. Traditionally they where held on carts which in turn were hauled around the city stopping at various points to perform the plays. The players were drawn from numerous guilds of the city. Today true to tradition they are performed by over 200 local amateurs.

The origins of many of these events are uncertain, but by the Tudor period they were accepted as traditional and customary. By the last quarter of the 16th century there was increasing opposition to the events on religious grounds and sometimes for public order concerns.

Hawick common riding

Hawick Borders - 10th and 11th June

The common riding begins at 6am on the Friday The first event after the snuffing ceremony is the singing of ‘Teribus’ on the steps of the tower hotel followed by an official procession around the town. They then proceed to Pilmuir where the Cornet cuts a sod to symbolise the occasion before leading his riders to the race course. After the race the Cornet and two men proceed to cobble pool, where the Cornet lowers the flag staff into the river three times to mark an ancient boundary of the burgh. There is the Cornets dinner and ball in the evening. On Saturday morning at 9.30 the Cornet and his supporters ride to Wilton lodge park to attend a ceremony at the war memorial and there follows another program of horse racing as well as other sports. The common riding concludes with the cornet returning the flag unstained and unsullied to the Provost at the town hall.

Garter ceremony

St. George's Chapel, Windsor, Berkshire - 12th June

The order of the Garter was founded in about 1348 by King Edward III. According to legend, the countess of Salisbury dropped her garter during a court ball. The King picked it up. Noting the smiles on the faces of onlookers he exclaimed – “Honi soit qui mal y pense” – “shame to him who thinks ill of it.” The order has always been one of chivalry and carries the motto –“Honi soit qui mal y pense”. Before the ceremony the sovereign entertains the knights to lunch at the castle. Thereafter follows the procession to St George’s chapel for the service and investiture of the new members to the order. The sovereign and the knights are all ceremoniously dressed in colourful robes and plumed hats. The route from the castle to the chapel is lined by the household cavalry and the Yeomen of the guard. Act as an escort. Tickets to the castle and the grounds have to be obtained in advance as entrance is strictly by ticket only, from the lord chamberlains office.

Queen's official birthday

Whitehall, London - 17th June 2006

The official birthday of the Sovereign is marked each year by a colourful and historic military parade and march-past, known as Trooping the Colour. It takes place each June on Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, in front of crowds of onlookers and, thanks to television, is enjoyed by millions world-wide. The troops participating in the parade are drawn from a military organisation which, though a part of the Army and therefore composed of fully trained, operational troops, is a national institution - the Household Division.

The ceremony derives from two old military ceremonies Trooping the Colour and Mounting The Queen's Guard. The origin of the ceremony goes back to the early eighteenth century, and possibly even earlier, when the guards and sentries for the Royal Palaces and other important buildings in the capital were mounted daily on the parade ground by the Horse Guards building. A feature of guard mounting was for the colours (or flags) of the battalion, which were - and still are - symbols of honour, but also in the past served as rallying points in battle, to be carried (or 'trooped') slowly down the ranks so that they could be seen and recognised by the soldiers. In 1748 it was ordered that this parade would also mark the official birthday of the Sovereign. From the accession of George IV the parade became - with the few exceptions of two World Wars and a parade cancellation in 1955 caused by a national rail strike - an annual event.

Riding the Marches

Held in mid June as part of the Bon Accord Festival. Held at Aberdeen, Grampian

The citizens of Aberdeen were granted a charter by King Robert the Bruce in 1319, giving them his hunting lands, Stocket and Forest. Regular perambulations of the boundaries have continued for many decades from the first recorded one in 1525. The tradition continues today, and about 25 square miles are still safeguarded in this fashion. Riding the Marshes of Aberdeen takes two days. The procession on the Monday follows the March stones on the north side of the city, to music played by a pipe band. The band and the procession ride to the south side on the Thursday. Riding the Marches commences at 19.30.

Celtic Beltane festival

Held during the third week of June at Peebles, Borders.

The Beltane festival is now combined with the and centred around riding of the marches. Beltane signifies the fire of bell and originated from the pagan Celtic festival in honour of the power which early summer gave; light, warmth and growth. Fires are lit and games held. The week commences with the installation of the cross Kirk, followed on the Wednesday by the installation of the Cornet and the bussing of Burgh Flag by the Cornet lass, which precedes the riding of the marches. On the Thursday night the Beltane concert takes place followed by the Cornets walk around the town. Finally on the Saturday there is a further ride-out and the proclamation of the Beltane faire follows. Sports and highland dancing are held in the afternoon and the festival ends with the beating the retreat in the high street.

Cakes and Ale ceremony

St Mary’s, Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk - 25th June

This is the annual service in memory of Jankyn Smyth, a well-to-do local merchant who provided in his will for an annual service for the alehouse residents, to be followed by cakes and ale. The sermon is endowed and must be preached by the vicar of St Mary’s. Residents of the alehouse who attend the service receive one shilling (five pence), which was the yearly tax due to the Abbey at the time of the bequest. After the service the board of trustees, residents and councillors proceed to the guildhall for ‘cakes and ale’.

<<BACK TO CALENDAR