Contrary Life has compiled a round-up of the ten best quirky Easter events taking place this year. We bring you the best of the UK’s customs and contests including coal carrying and marbles championships, goat racing, chair lifting and bottle kicking. And if that isn’t enough, we’ve also compiled a selection of alternative events including fancy pyjama parties, artistic sheep trails and unusual Easter plays for you to enjoy. So what are you waiting for…
1. Chair Lifting in Greenwich
Blackheath Morris Men Chair Lifting in Greenwich
When: 28th March 2016 (Easter Monday)
Where: Greenwich, London
£: Free
What is it?
The Easter Monday Chair Lifting is an old custom which was carried out all over Britain until about a hundred years ago.
The custom fizzled out after the Church, mistakenly, encouraged its discontinuance, stating it was a parody of Christ’s rising. In fact chair lifting is much older and probably originated as a fertility ritual.
The chair lifting is exactly as it sounds, with ladies being elevated on Eostre’s Throne of Flowers. Eostre was the Anglo-Saxon Goddess of Spring and Fertility, whose name still lingers in the word Easter – her holiday. For a woman to be lifted was seen as a compliment as she would have been deemed to be desirable. Traditionally the lady who was lifted bestowed her thanks on each of those who lifted her in the form of a kiss before departure. In some areas, on Easter Tuesday, the ladies lifted the men, who in addition to a kiss, had to leave beer money as well.
Today the Blackheath Morris Men continue the custom in Greenwich on Easter Monday.
More info: www.blackheathmorris.com
2. The Middleton Pace Egg Play
When: 28th March 2016 (Easter Monday), from 12 noon
Where: Takes in the hostelries around the village of Rhodes and town of Middleton – the play usually begins at The Dusty Miller at 12pm
£: Free
What is it?
Pace-Egging is an old Easter begging custom which is still carried out in parts of northern England. Traditionally the entertainment was offered by poor villagers in exchange for alms.
Today the custom generally involves a lot of singing, dancing and drinking. Middleton’s pace-egging usually tours around seven local pubs, beginning at The Dusty Miller. The play involves heroes, villains, a fight and plenty of eccentricity.
More info: www.pace-egg.org.uk and www.facebook.com/Middleton-Pace-Egg-Play
3. British & World Marbles Championship
A long history of marbles at Tinsley Green: Pop Maynard in the ring.
When: 25th March 2016 (Good Friday)
Where: Greyhound, Tinsley Green, West Sussex
£: Free to watch
What is it?
Tinsley Green in West Sussex is known as the home of marbles and the game has been played at the original Greyhound pub since the game’s revival in 1932. The Marbles Championships was a focal point of village life back then and so it continues to be today. In the 1940s an International Championship was introduced, the first of which attracted competition from the Americans. Since then there have been players from France, Germany and Japan amongst others. The object of the game is to knock one or more marbles off the ring by projecting a tolley (small glass or ceramic sphere) against them.
More info: www.greyhoundmarbles.com
4. World Coal Carrying Championships
When: 28th March 2016 (Easter Monday), registration begins at 10.15am and the races begin at 12pm
Where: Gawthorpe & Ossett, West Yorkshire
£: Free to watch. Men’s Veterans Race (40 years and over) and the Women’s Race costs £10 per person to enter. Men’s Main Race (18 years and over) costs £15 per person. The youth races cost £3 and the children’s fun run costs £2 to enter.
What is it?
This Easter the 52nd World Coal Carrying Championships will take place in Gawthorpe, West Yorkshire. The event consists of men’s, women’s and children’s races in which men carry 50kg sacks of coal and women 20kg.
The adult races start from the Royal Oak public house on Owl Lane in Ossett and continue for a distance of 1012 metres to the finish line at the Maypole Green in Gawthorpe village.
More info: For entry forms and race details visit www.gawthorpemaypole.org.uk
5. Bottle Kicking & Hare Pie Scramble
The unique custom of Bottle Kicking in Hallaton.
When: 28th March 2016 (Easter Monday), from 9.30am
Where: Hallaton, Leicestershire
£: Free
What is it?
Every Easter Monday the village of Hallaton plays host to a unique set of customs. It begins with a parade through the villages of Medbourne and Hallaton with a hare pie and three kegs. This year the parade will be led by Nene Valley Pipe Band.
The Bottle Kicking, a strenuous game similar to rugby, can be traced back over 200 years but is thought to be much older. The competition begins with a wooden dummy keg or ‘bottle’ being tossed into the air. Teams then try to move the bottle across two streams, one mile (1.6 km) apart, by any means possible. After the event the winners will be celebrating at The Cross. All proceeds from the event go towards local charities.
More info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bottle-kicking and www.facebook.com/BottleKickingHallaton
6. Workington Uppies & Downies
When: 25th March 2016 (Good Friday), plus two further matches on the following Tuesday and Saturday
Where: Workington, Cumbria
£: Free
What is it?
Every year in Workington three Uppies and Downies matches are held every Easter, raising money for various local charities. There are few rules to this rough ball game, but object is to ‘hail the ball’ (throw it up in the air three times) at the opposing team’s goal. The Downies goal is a capstan at the town’s harbour, while the Uppies is the gates of Workington Hall Parklands. The game is thought to originate from the rivalry between the seafarers around the marsh and the colliers of the top end of the tow. Three special Uppies and Downies balls are handmade every year for the occasion. Traditionally, the owner of nearby Curwen Hall awards a sovereign to the player who successfully hails the ball.
The town even has a pair of statues depicting the Easter event, created by local sculptor Colin Telfer. One stands outside Workington Hall, the other at the harbour.
More info: wikipedia.org/wiki/Uppies_and_Downies
7. The Oxford & Cambridge Goat Race
Hamish and Hazel race in the Oxford & Cambridge Goat Race (Photo: Tyson Benson)
When: 27th March 2016 (Easter Sunday), 12pm – 5pm
Where: Spitalfields City Farm, Buxton Street, London E1 5AR
£: Tickets cost £13 for adults and children under 12 years old go free
What is it?
The Oxford & Cambridge Goat Race is a charity event in aid of Spitalfields City Farm and take its name from another more famous event.
The event sees two goats, one representing Oxford and the other Cambridge, racing along a short course at the city farm in East London. There will be entertainment during the afternoon from the likes of Les Zoings and Ernie and Luke, as well as games and street food.
More info: www.thegoatrace.org and www.facebook.com/thegoatrace
8. The Great Finborough Bog Race
When: 28th March 2016 (Easter Monday)
Where: Great Finborough, Suffolk
£: Free
What is it?
The Bog Race is a key part of village life in Great Finborough. On Easter Monday each year there is a battle between the villages of Haughley and Great Finborough. Participants race across the Suffolk countryside from Boyton Hall to a local pub called The Chestnut Horse. The first team to return to the pub with ‘The Contract’ wins. The idea of the race and the contract comes from a time when workers from Boyton Hall were in the pub rather than at work. Workers were hired from the neighbouring village of Haughley to replace them. The original workers were up in arms, so the employer threw the work contract up in the air and said that the first team of workers to step over the threshold of the pub, holding the contract, could have the job.
More info: wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Finborough
9. Egg Dancing at Blists Hill Victorian Town
‘Egg Dancing’ whilst blindfolded at Blists Hill Victorian Town.
When: 25th – 28th March 2016, open 10am – 5pm
Where: Blists Hill Victorian Town, Ironbridge, Shropshire
£: Admission costs £17.95 for adults and £11.85 for children (annual tickets are also available)
What is it?
Join the residents at Blists Hill Victorian Town, near Ironbridge as they celebrate Easter in traditional Victorian style with egg dancing and egg rolling, plus an Easter chick trail, egg hunt and Easter bonnet parade, all taking place daily between 25th and 28th March.
The highlight will be the unusual pastime of egg dancing held opposite the town’s Print Shop at 11am every morning. Once blindfolded, the townsfolk will dance across the street without stepping on eggs that are carefully placed along their route. Have-a-go after the demonstration and win a yummy chocolate reward for completing the course without stepping on an egg!
Then try your hand at decorating eggs in the Goods Shed between 11am and 1pm ready to compete in the egg rolling championship on The Green at 3pm, with more chocolate prizes for owners of the winning eggs. Wear your best Easter Bonnet to join in the traditional parade at 2pm; the town’s milliner will be judging the finest creations in the Pleasure Gardens.
More info: www.ironbridge.org.uk
10. The Britannia Coconut Dancers Boundary to Boundary Dance
The Bacup Britannia Coconut Dancers.
When: 26th March 2016, from 9am
Where: Bacup, Lancashire
£: Free
What is it?
Every Easter Saturday in the town of Bacup, the Britannia Coconut Dancers, with their blackened faces, decorated hats, red and white kilts, white stockings and clogs, are accompanied by a brass band to uphold the Traditional Boundary Dance. The dancers are named after the village of Britannia, where they were formed over 100 years ago. Their style of dance and costume is thought to be unique.
The dances and the dress are thought to have been brought to Cornwall by Moorish Pirates who settled and became employed as miners. Some of the men moved to work in the north, bringing their skills and their dances with them.
There are two types of dance. The garland dance is of pagan or medieval origin and thought to represent the coming of spring. The dancers probably blackened their faces to prevent evil spirits recognising them and possibly to reflect their mining connections. For the second type of dance, the coconut dance, they tap out rhythms on wooden discs or ‘nuts’ fastened to their hands, knees and waist. The nuts were originally used to protect miners as they crawled along the narrow passages in the mines.
More info: www.coconutters.co.uk
If none of those take your fancy, you could always try one of these…
London Harness Horse Parade
Transport through the ages with the London Harness Horse Parade
When: 28th March 2016 (Easter Monday), gates open at 8.30am and parade begins late morning
Where: South of England Centre, Ardingly, West Sussex
£: Admission costs £7 per person
What is it?
The famous London Harness Horse Parade will take place at the South of England Centre, Ardingly, West Sussex on Easter Monday. The annual event is an amalgamation of The London Cart Horse Parade (first started in 1885) and the London Van Horse Parade (started in 1904) and depicts transportation through the ages.
The London Harness Horse Parade has been a popular Easter spectacle for 130 years, and ten years ago moved from its central London location to the spacious, purpose-built South of England Centre in Ardingly, Sussex. The parade has since been expanded to include a display of the earliest motor cars to enhance the spectacle of how transport has developed over the ages.
In addition to over 100 horse-drawn vehicles, the parade will include vintage tractors, historic and classic cars, allowing spectators to experience the progression from horse-drawn transport to mechanically propelled vehicles.
The event will also feature stationary engines, trade stands, refreshments and horse-drawn wagon rides.
More info: www.lhhp.co.uk
Hot Cross Buns at The Widow’s Son
When: 25th March 2016 (Good Friday)
Where: The Widow’s Son, 75 Devons Road, Bow, London
£: Free
What is it?
The Widow’s Son is in many ways a very ordinary old boozer in Bow, East London. First built in the early 19th century, the pub is said to be built on the site of an old widow’s cottage. Every Good Friday, at The Widow’s Son, an unusual custom takes place. The story goes that the son of the old widow left for sea and promised to return for Easter. He asked to have a nice hot cross bun waiting for him when he got home. Sadly, he never returned, but the widow keep a fresh hot cross bun for her son every Good Friday until her death. After her death, a huge collection of hot cross buns was discovered in a net hanging from the ceiling of her cottage.
The public house that now stands on the site of the cottage is known by locals as the Bun House, and has continued the hot cross bun tradition every Good Friday. Every year a sailor from the Royal Navy places a new hot cross bun into a net of buns hanging above the bar.
More info: en.wikipedia.org
A Passion for Birmingham
An Easter promenade play which tours iconic locations in Birmingham
When: 15th – 25th March 2016
Where: Birmingham
£: Tickets cost £15
What is it?
The critically acclaimed show, A Passion for Birmingham, returns for the last time.
Set in an alternate Second City which never really recovered from the riots of 2011, this immersive promenade production retells the story of Jesus’s last days with a gritty contemporary edge. Audience members are led through a variety of different spaces in Birmingham City Centre; in each new location, a new scene unfolds.
As much activist as preacher, Jesus and his disciples form a movement similar to Occupy or Anonymous, drawing unwelcome attention from the authorities. Events quickly spin out of control and the friends have to decide: is their leader a man? A messiah? Or both?
This will be the largest and most ambitious run of A Passion For Birmingham. The action takes place in and around the Jewellery Quarter, with versions of The Sermon On The Mount and the Last Supper taking place at locations such as St Paul’s Church and the A.E. Harris building.
More info: www.oldjointstock.co.uk/whats-on/a-passion-for-birmingham
Christathon Charity Pub Crawl
When: 27th March 2016
Where: London
£: Participants help raise money for charity
What is it?
A recent invention, the Christathon Charity Pub Crawl sees participants dress up as Jesus and visit some of the biblically named pubs in London. The event has been taking place annually since 2008 and has raised money for charities including Christian Aid, The Red Cross and The British Heart Foundation. This year it will be raising money for the Papworth Hospital Charity. Anyone can take part in the event, just dress up and join in the fun.
More info: www.facebook.com/christathoncharitypubcrawl
Easter Picnic Fete at Cahoots
head underground to Cahoots this Easter.
When: 26th March & 27th March 2016
Where: Cahoots, 13 Kingly Court, London W1B 5PW
£: Picnics cost from £46 per person
What is it?
Soho’s underground sensation Cahoots is celebrating Easter this year with a very special Squiffy Picnic. Guests can escape the hustle and bustle of Central London and head down below to find a tranquil garden party, complete with vintage wicker hampers, filled with delightfully British cuisine and cocktails circa 1946. The Station Master will greet guests with a refreshing Sipsmith Summer Cocktail before heading down the apples and pears to a tube station decorated with pastel bunting, hay bales, and all sorts of games.
Guests can look forward to a dedicated Easter Hamper menu, complete with cake-infused and Easter Bunny cocktails along with a rationed delicacies that pay homage to post-war Britain.
Throughout the afternoon, guests can play games that are sure to boost morale, from Spin the Wheel to Don’t Touch the Wire! There will be all sorts of fun prizes, from free drink vouchers, sandwiches, 1940s thimbles and bags of sweets. There will also be a bric-a-brac sale, in which guests can purchase Vera Lynn mugs to take home, homemade cakes, and 1940s vintage items. All proceeds from the bric-a-brac sale go to charity in aid of refugees in Calais.
More info: cahoots-london.com
Hedley Barrel Race
When: 28th March 2016 (Easter Monday), registration from 11.30am and race from 1pm
Where: Hedley-on-the-Hill, Northumberland
£: Free to watch
What is it?
The Hedley Barrel Race is run every Easter Monday and is organised by the local Feathers Inn. The race sees competitors carrying an empty nine-gallon beer barrel, over a 1.5 mile course.
The lucky victors can win 72 pints (a keg of beer). On the day there will also be egg jarping, an Easter bonnet competition, real ale and a BBQ.
More info: thefeathers.net and www.facebook.com/TheFeathersInn
Fancy Pyjama Party at Barts speakeasy
Slumber soiree at Barts speakeasy.
When: 27th March 2016 (Easter Sunday), from 4pm
Where: Barts, Chelsea Cloisters, 87 Sloane Avenue, London SW3 3DW
£: Make a reservation via shh@barts-london.com
What is it?
Quirky London speakeasy, Barts, is bringing glamour back to the boudoir with a Fancy Pyjama Party to celebrate Easter on Sunday 27th March.
Located on the prestigious Sloane Square, Barts, will be the lap of luxury for guests to don their lavish silk pyjamas and velvet smoking jackets for the ultimate slumber soiree. The talented Barts bar team will be serving dreamy tipples including Sweet Dreams, a calming blend of elixir of camomile, Russian Standard, lemon, and egg white, and the Champions Breakfast for an extra boost made with almond milk, coffee infused with bourbon, amaretto, and aromatic bitters. There will also be teacup cocktails, midnight snacks, hidden Easter eggs and pillow fights.
More info: barts-london.com
Battle Marbles Matches
When: 25th March 2016 (Good Friday)
Where: Battle Abbey Green, Battle, East Sussex
£: Free to watch. To enter contact the organisers via marbles@battlechamber.org
What is it?
The annual tradition of marbles being played at Battle dates back to the 1940s. Local teams of five play games of marbles and an Easter Bonnet competition is held for children. Teams need to enter in advance of the day, and spectators are most welcome to watch the competition. In addition to the games there is also a scramble by children for 1,000 free marbles, which are traditionally given away every year. Expect plenty of competitors in fancy dress!
More info: www.facebook.com/BattleMarblesMatches
Go Herdwick sheep trail
The Calvert Trust’s Justin Farnan, with Star Grazer, painted by artist Jane Veveris Callan.
When: From 23rd March 2016
Where: Lake District, Cumbria
£: Free
What is it?
Go Herdwick is the Calvert Trust’s Public Art Trail of decorated sheep. The sheep will be appearing along the 555 bus route in Rydal, Grasmere, Ambleside, Keswick and Windermere from 23rd March until 4th September 2016. The life size sheep will be placed in parks, buildings and on the streets for members of the public to find. All the sheep have been decorated by artists including Liam Spencer, Heather James, Karen Lester and Rowan Pickles.
The Calvert Trust is a charity which provides life-changing experiences for people with sensory, learning and physical disabilities. The distinctive and hardy Herdwick sheep is native to Cumbria and can be found across the national park, often grazing high up on the fells.
More info: www.goherdwick.co.uk
Manchester Duck Race
When: 25th March 2016 (Good Friday), from 11am
Where: Leftbank, Spinningfields, Manchester
£: Costs £1 per duck (corporate ducks cost £225 + VAT)
What is it?
Taking place at its home at Leftbank, Spinningfields, the Manchester Duck Race is back for its seventh year on Good Friday.
There will be duck craft workshops, an urban petting zoo, fairground rides and street food from some of Manchester’s favourite street food traders at The Kitchens. The rubber ducks will race at 2pm, with prizes up for grabs in both the family and corporate races.
All proceeds from the duck race will go to Brainwave, a local children’s charity.
More info: www.spinningfieldsonline.com/events/the-manchester-duck-race