Love your greens? Why not take part in the World Watercress Eating Championships?
When: 15th May 2016
Where: Alresford, Hampshire
£: Free
What is it?
The Alresford Watercress Festival will take place on Sunday 15th May 2016 in Hampshire.
The festival takes place every year to celebrate the local watercress crop. For the festival, the centre of the town comes alive with food markets, music, and dance throughout the day.
One of the highlights of the Watercress Festival is the street cavalcade, which begins at 10.30am, The cavalcade features jazz musicians, morris dancers and local school children, who accompany a horse and cart carrying the Watercress King and Queen. Local children will also be distributing the first of the season’s watercress crop to the festival visitors.
Another highlight of the festival is the quirky World Watercress Eating Championships. The championships will take place at 3pm in front of the cookery demo unit and competitors should be signed up prior to the event. The contest is fairly straightforward, with the aim to eat two bags of watercress, in the quickest possible time. The current record is 32 seconds.
The other watercress themed competition taking place this year will be for the most creative/interesting/mind-blowingly awesome use of watercress. The stall holders at the festival will be coming up with some unusual uses for the crop in an attempt to win the award. Expect to see watercress fudge, cocktails and sausages.
The festival will have a main stage which will host entertainment throughout the day, including live music from the Sussex Jazz Kings, Southampton Ukulele Jam and Godalming Brass. At the Cookery Demo Unit on Broad Street local chefs will be taking part in demonstrations during the day. Other entertainment on the streets will include performances from Basingclog Morris, Hook Eagles Morris, the all-girl Mayflower Morris, and Buttons Rapper.
Finally, Hampshire Farmers’ Market will be located in Broad Street with over 50 stalls of local produce, and a Festival Market selling a range of arts, crafts and gifts.
More info: www.watercressfestival.org