UK Travel Blog

We Brits are well known for being a little, well “nuts”, but there are some events around the country which make even the most eccentric of us scratch our heads and wonder – how the heck did that get started!

Here we’ve searched the country for some of the most interesting and sometimes most utterly bizarre events on the calendar.

1) The World Gravy Wrestling Championships
Started in 1997 in the seaside resort of Blackpool, the event is part of the Pennine Lancashire Festival of Food & Culture. Each August contestants slip and slide around on luke-warm gravy while trying to gain points for pinning down their components in the gravy.

The event now has now become so popular that it’s broadcast on TVs from Europe to Australia and the Far East. If you know whether the gravy is topped up during the contest or simply goes cold and lumpy, please tell us in the comments section.

2) St Ives Feast And Hurling Of The Silver Ball
Exactly when this event first started is lost in time, but the idea is around 600 men, women and children run through the streets of St. Ives in Cornwall with an ball made from apple-wood encased in sterling silver, weighing in around half a kilo.

There are two teams – town and country – and the goal is simply to get the ball either to a stone at an ancient Celtic cross for the towns folk, or a stone around a mile to the north of the town for the country folk. Whichever team does this is declared that years winner.

3) Olney Pancake Race
A pancake race itself might not seen that quirky, but along with being a very old tradition this one has a rather unique element.

The race has been held every Shrove Tuesday in Olney, (Buckinghamshire) since 1445 and consists of local women dressed up in skirt, apron etc. running through the streets of the town tossing pancakes. The quickest time down the course was until 1950 accepted as the winner.

However as of 1950, the 415 yard dash was twinned with the town of Liberal in Kansas (USA) and now the race winner is declared after both results are known with the fastest either side of the Atlantic being declared the victor.

4) Stilton Cheese Rolling Championship
It seems rather appropriate that a cheese rolling championship should take place in a village of this name, hence we thought this was worthy of a mention. Every May Day, teams try to be the fastest to roll a block of wooden cheese down the hill in the village and be crowned “Stilton Cheese Rolling Champions”.

Whether the village actually gave it’s name to the cheese we know today has often been disputed, but in 2009 strong evidence came to light that indeed something very similar has been produced here since the 1700’s.

5) The Nurdling Championships
Every May Day the The Jackson Stops Inn at Stretton, Rutland, plays host to the Nurdling Championships in which contestants hurl 13 old pennies into a hole drilled in the seat of an oak settle. The winner is presumably the person who gets the most pennies through the hole.

For those unfamiliar with Medieval furniture, an Oak Settle is essentially like a park bench in design but generally slightly lower. Why exactly someone saw fit to drill a hole in one is one of those many Medieval mysteries.

6) World Snail Racing Championships
“Ready, steady, err go….are they moving yet?”

For over 25 years, the good folks of Congham, near King’s Lynn in Norfolk have invited anyone with a snail to enter the world snail racing championships and see if they have the fastest snail in the west…well technically east.

The record holder by 2010 was a snail called Archie who completed the 13 inch course in around two minutes, which is probably equivalent to Jamaican sprinter and track legend Usain Bolt doing the 100 meters in around 2 seconds if my calculations are correct.

7) Isle of Wight Garlic Festival
I don’t know about you, but garlic isn’t something I’m fond of. However in Newchurch on the Isle of Wight they must love it as every August this festival has over 250 stalls selling everything it’s possible to make with garlic.

Examples of produce include garlic ice cream, jelly beans, fudge and even beer. The festival attracts around 25,000 people every year so plenty of people must like garlic.

8. World Gurning Championships (see picture at top)
This slightly bizarre event takes place at the Egremont Crab Fair in West Cumbria on the 3rd Saturday of every September (18th Sept 2010). The event actually dates from 1267 making it one of the oldest fairs in the world!

It’s believed that the event started when locals bit into the crab apples thrown from the cart as it passes through the town.

The idea is you put your head through a horse collar or ‘braffin’ and try to pull the ugliest face possible. The person judged to have pulled the most contorted face is deemed the winner. Contestants are not allowed to use their hands or crab apples to aid in the pulling of faces.

For more information and to join in, see the Egremont Crab Fair web site.

9) Biggest Liar in the World Contest
Held on the 3rd Sunday of November at the Bridge Inn, Stanton Bridge in Cumbria the contest is to find the best ‘tall-storyteller’ who must tell a 5 to 10 minute tall tale and convince the judges of it’s truth.

One of the best tall tales came from a recent contest which explained how the Lake District wasn’t formed by glaciers and volcano’s at all, but by large moles and eels. For someone who lives nearby, that makes a lot more sense than what they told us in school!

Anyone is welcome to join in and tell their tales, although politicians and lawyers are generally discouraged.

10) Robert Dover’s Cotswold Olimpicks
Local barrister Captain Robert Dover started the Cotswold Olimpicks in 1612 on Dover’s Hill, above Chipping Campden, although the games are more based on traditional countryside games rather than anything you might find in London in 2012.

The games include favourites such as tug-of-war, obstacle races and wrestling. But the highlight of the games is the the shin-kicking competition! To reduce the chances of injury, both contestants fill their trouser legs with straw then hold each others shoulders and kick each others shins using steel capped boots.

The winner is the one who can stand the pain the longest.

“As hosts of the more senior event, the village of Chipping Campden (pop 2,500) wishes London success in hosting the modern Olympiad and would be happy to pass on any organisational tips.” – the Cotswold Olimpicks.

If you know of any other quirky events that deserve a mention, pop them into the comments section below…

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