Showing posts with label Festivals and events. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Festivals and events. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Sunday, May 02, 2010
Jack-in-the-Green
Yesterday we celebrated May Day by attending a Jack-in-the-Green procession. I imagine you have no idea what that is, so let me give you some background information.
Jack-in-the-Green processions have their roots in the milkmaid May Day celebrations of the mid 17th century. At that time, milkmaids would go out with the utensils of their trade (cups, pots, spoons) decorated with garlands and piled into a pyramid, which they carried on their heads. Later on, other groups such as chimney sweeps also started taking advantage of May Day as an opportunity to collect money.
At some point during the 18th century, the separate garlands of flowers and leaves were transformed into a structure, like a large beehive, covered with foliage which was carried by a man and which became known as a Jack-in-the-Green.
By the 19th century, May Day had come to mean chimney sweeps with a Jack and music provided by drums, fiddles and whistles. However, by the end of the century, these celebrations had come to be considered too disorderly and were often suppressed by the police. Jacks became a rarity after the First World War.
A revival started in the 1970's and there are now two well-known Jack-in-the-Green celebrations in South East England, one in Rochester and another in Hastings. London has its own Jack-in-the-Green procession, organised by the Deptford Fowlers Troop. This is the one we attended.
The route we followed took us along the South Bank and over the Millennium Bridge to a pub opposite St Paul's Cathedral, where we stopped for a well-earned drink or three.
Along the way, we met a group of Morris Men (folk dancers) heading in the opposite direction. They kindly stopped to be photographed.
The man inside the Jack also came out when we reached the pub and posed for photos. I also took a short video showing him twirling to the music. The big structure in the background is St Paul's Cathedral.
Tradition says that as long as the drum can be heard, the rain will hold off. I took this photo shortly after the procession finished, so perhaps there is some truth in that belief. Funnily enough, it started raining an hour or so later - and hasn't stopped since.
The historical information for this post came from a booklet titled "Fowlers Troops and the Deptford Jack-in-the-Green: A history of an old London May Day tradition" by Sarah Crofts.
Jack-in-the-Green processions have their roots in the milkmaid May Day celebrations of the mid 17th century. At that time, milkmaids would go out with the utensils of their trade (cups, pots, spoons) decorated with garlands and piled into a pyramid, which they carried on their heads. Later on, other groups such as chimney sweeps also started taking advantage of May Day as an opportunity to collect money.
At some point during the 18th century, the separate garlands of flowers and leaves were transformed into a structure, like a large beehive, covered with foliage which was carried by a man and which became known as a Jack-in-the-Green.
By the 19th century, May Day had come to mean chimney sweeps with a Jack and music provided by drums, fiddles and whistles. However, by the end of the century, these celebrations had come to be considered too disorderly and were often suppressed by the police. Jacks became a rarity after the First World War.
A revival started in the 1970's and there are now two well-known Jack-in-the-Green celebrations in South East England, one in Rochester and another in Hastings. London has its own Jack-in-the-Green procession, organised by the Deptford Fowlers Troop. This is the one we attended.
The route we followed took us along the South Bank and over the Millennium Bridge to a pub opposite St Paul's Cathedral, where we stopped for a well-earned drink or three.
Along the way, we met a group of Morris Men (folk dancers) heading in the opposite direction. They kindly stopped to be photographed.
The man inside the Jack also came out when we reached the pub and posed for photos. I also took a short video showing him twirling to the music. The big structure in the background is St Paul's Cathedral.
Tradition says that as long as the drum can be heard, the rain will hold off. I took this photo shortly after the procession finished, so perhaps there is some truth in that belief. Funnily enough, it started raining an hour or so later - and hasn't stopped since.
The historical information for this post came from a booklet titled "Fowlers Troops and the Deptford Jack-in-the-Green: A history of an old London May Day tradition" by Sarah Crofts.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
Greek Epiphany carols
OK, this is a self-indulgent post, I'll admit it and give you fair warning.
Today is the Feast of Epiphany. If I were in Greece, I'd be having the day off, and kids would be knocking on my door all morning long to sing the Epiphany carols in exchange for money to buy presents.
Carol singing is an important holiday tradition in Greece. It takes place on Christmas eve, New Year's eve and on the Feast of Epiphany. I have many fond childhood memories of singing carols with my friends and using the money to buy presents for my parents or contribute towards my own Christmas present.
This picture, painted in the 1870's by Nikiforos Lytras, is the most well-known Greek painting with a Christmas theme and one of my personal favourites.
Since I'm in England at the moment, no one has turned up to sing on my doorstep, so I'm having to recreate the sounds of the day via the magic of YouTube. This is what the Epiphany carols would sound like (if a children's choir paid me a visit):
The lyrics roughly translate as follows:
Today is the day of light and enlightment
There is great joy and holy blessing
Our Lady the Blessed Mary
Is down by the Jordan River
She's carrying a harp, a candle she's holding
She's pleading with St. John
St. John, lord and Baptist,
Baptise me, make me a child of God
So I'll be able to ascend to heaven
To gather roses and incense
Good day, good day!
Good day to you, master and mistress!
Since this is an indulgent post, I could even close my eyes and imagine that a cute Cypriot singer turned up to sing for me. This is what he would be sounding like:
I think I know which version I prefer ;-)
Today is the Feast of Epiphany. If I were in Greece, I'd be having the day off, and kids would be knocking on my door all morning long to sing the Epiphany carols in exchange for money to buy presents.
Carol singing is an important holiday tradition in Greece. It takes place on Christmas eve, New Year's eve and on the Feast of Epiphany. I have many fond childhood memories of singing carols with my friends and using the money to buy presents for my parents or contribute towards my own Christmas present.
This picture, painted in the 1870's by Nikiforos Lytras, is the most well-known Greek painting with a Christmas theme and one of my personal favourites.
Since I'm in England at the moment, no one has turned up to sing on my doorstep, so I'm having to recreate the sounds of the day via the magic of YouTube. This is what the Epiphany carols would sound like (if a children's choir paid me a visit):
The lyrics roughly translate as follows:
Today is the day of light and enlightment
There is great joy and holy blessing
Our Lady the Blessed Mary
Is down by the Jordan River
She's carrying a harp, a candle she's holding
She's pleading with St. John
St. John, lord and Baptist,
Baptise me, make me a child of God
So I'll be able to ascend to heaven
To gather roses and incense
Good day, good day!
Good day to you, master and mistress!
Since this is an indulgent post, I could even close my eyes and imagine that a cute Cypriot singer turned up to sing for me. This is what he would be sounding like:
I think I know which version I prefer ;-)
Friday, November 27, 2009
West Country carnival
The West Country Carnival is an annual celebration in SW England which features a parade of illuminated floats . The first celebration was held 404 years ago, to mark the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. It started as a procession with wax torches and over time evolved into a series of fabulous nighttime parades.
There are at least two different circuits that I'm aware of, one in Wessex and another in Somerset. The Somerset one (also known as the Bridgwater circuit) is by common admission the better one, with a larger number of illuminated floats, whereas the Wessex carnival has more walking entries.
There are more than 100 floats in the Somerset carnival. They move to a different location every day until they have appeared in 8 separate local carnivals, namely in Bridgwater, North Petherton, Highbridge & Burnham, Shepton Mallet, Midsommer Norton, Wells, Glastonbury and Weston-super-Mare. The photos are from this year's Weston-super-Mare finale.
There are two types of float, tableaus (motionless pose) and features (dancing and movement). I've already shown you pictures of the best tableau (To The Trees) so for this post I have used only pictures of features, namely Parade, Check Mate and Joust. Gremlins CC's Joust and To The Trees were voted joint overall champions by the judges. According to the local press, Joust took 12 months to construct and features 20,000 lights.
If you're interested, you can see (lots) more photos of the carnival on my Flickr account. I took 600 in total, and of those 436 made the Flickr mark.
Monday, November 23, 2009
To The Trees
Last Monday the weather was much more amenable that it's been today, so I was able to attend the finale of the Somerset Illuminated Carnival that took place in Weston-Super-Mare, a pretty seaside town in SW England.
There are mainly two types of float taking place in the Carnival, tableaus (motionless pose) and features (dancing and movement). All floats are illuminated, as the Carnival takes place at night.
By far the most impressive tableau was Gemini CC's To The Trees, with a Robin Hood theme. The detail in presentation was amazing, and the poses were challenging and very well executed. I mean, how long can anyone stay with their mouths open, staring into space?
Apparently, some people can keep going for more than two hours!
Unsurprisingly, To The Trees won first place in the best tableau category and were also joint overall winners.
I generally prefer features, but couldn't fail to be impressed by this particular tableau. I stood really close to it at the end of the procession and I swear it was like looking at waxworks.
It was only when you looked into their eyes that you could tell they were definitely humans.
I bet they were really happy when they heard the STOP command and could finally relax their poses and give their poor muscles a rest!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Thai food festival
Last Sunday we went to a Thai Food Festival held in Greenwich Park. The weather didn't look too promising to start with, but we had glorious sunshine all afternoon, which is a rare treat in London, even in summertime. No wonder the festival was so busy, even though there was an entrance fee.
The main attraction of the festival was the large number of stalls selling yummy Thai food, most of which was cooked on the premises. There was barbequed meat, aromatic curries, noodles, Pad Thai, fruit and snacks.
This man convinced me to try some Thai sausage. It was delicious, although not quite as nice as German bratwurst.
There were several stalls selling anything from Hello Kitty merchandise...
...to leather shoes and wooden photo frames.
We also saw a puppet theatre performance. It was a traditional story, but can't remember what it was.
Look at how the puppeteers move in sync with the puppet.
Several stalls displayed awesome Thai fruit carvings. Who would have thought watermelons and marrows could look so interesting?
We even got to watch a carver in action. He was turning a plain-looking melon into an amazing flower with a very very sharp knife.
OK this isn't very Thai, but I couldn't not show you a traditional ice-cream van. There were several dotted around the festival grounds and judging by the queues, business must have been really good that day.
If you'd like to see more pictures from the festival, I have posted a selection on Flickr.
The main attraction of the festival was the large number of stalls selling yummy Thai food, most of which was cooked on the premises. There was barbequed meat, aromatic curries, noodles, Pad Thai, fruit and snacks.
This man convinced me to try some Thai sausage. It was delicious, although not quite as nice as German bratwurst.
There were several stalls selling anything from Hello Kitty merchandise...
...to leather shoes and wooden photo frames.
We also saw a puppet theatre performance. It was a traditional story, but can't remember what it was.
Look at how the puppeteers move in sync with the puppet.
Several stalls displayed awesome Thai fruit carvings. Who would have thought watermelons and marrows could look so interesting?
We even got to watch a carver in action. He was turning a plain-looking melon into an amazing flower with a very very sharp knife.
OK this isn't very Thai, but I couldn't not show you a traditional ice-cream van. There were several dotted around the festival grounds and judging by the queues, business must have been really good that day.
If you'd like to see more pictures from the festival, I have posted a selection on Flickr.
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Maypole dancing
The children in last Wordless Wednesday's photo were getting ready to do a maypole dance. This photo shows them in action.
It wasn't the most intricate dancing I've seen, but they deserve full credit for showing even a tiny amount of enthusiasm considering it was raining at the time. Nothing like a May day should be - but exactly like most Maydays are in the UK.
This is a short video I took, which shows them weaving the ribbons one way, then undoing them. They were rather pleased with themselves when they finished and got a round of applause.
Personally, I think the lady in the middle holding the pole steady deserved the biggest praise. That was a task and a half!
It wasn't the most intricate dancing I've seen, but they deserve full credit for showing even a tiny amount of enthusiasm considering it was raining at the time. Nothing like a May day should be - but exactly like most Maydays are in the UK.
This is a short video I took, which shows them weaving the ribbons one way, then undoing them. They were rather pleased with themselves when they finished and got a round of applause.
Personally, I think the lady in the middle holding the pole steady deserved the biggest praise. That was a task and a half!
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Sunday, March 15, 2009
St Paddy's day
OK, it's not quite St Patrick's Day yet, but the London celebrations took place today and we had lovely weather for them too. I missed the parade, but got into town just as the main festival was kicking off at Trafalgar Square. These are some of the photos I took.
In the spirit of the day, I have purchased some Irish soda bread and I'm now off to make my favourite Irish hotpot for dinner. Mmmmm!
Monday, March 09, 2009
Pancake Tuesday
Tuesday before last was Pancake day in the UK. This is another name for Shrove Tuesday, the last day before Lent. It's called Pancake day because the 40 days of Lent traditionally formed a period of fasting, during which only plain food was eaten, therefore rich ingredients such as eggs, milk, and sugar were used up immediately prior to the commencement of the fast by making pancakes.
Eating pancakes is complemented by pancake racing. This is said to have originated when a housewife in Olney, a small town in Buckinghamshire, where the most famous race is held to this day, was so busy making pancakes that she forgot the time until she heard the church bells ringing for the special confession service before Lent. She raced out of the house to church while still carrying her frying pan and pancake - tossing along the way - and since then we hold pancake races on the day.
Every year I try to make it to a pancake race, which is a bit tricky as pancake races take place in the middle of the working day, so I usually end up to one near the office. This year I had the opportunity to venture further afield, and ended up in the City of London, at the pancake race organised by the Worshipful Company of Poulters, one of the Livery Companies (one-time trade associations) based in the City of London.
Contestants competed in gowns and fancy dress, all wearing aprons and holding pancake pans. If you've spotted the guy in bandages above, worry not - his injuries were fake and not sustained during the race.
Ready...
Steady...
Run and toss!
Toss some more!
The winners in each category received a copper pan.
Whereas those who didn't do so well received a wooden spoon.
In case you're thinking this is too weird to be true, here is a short video of the grand final, with the winners of each category competing against each other:
Eating pancakes is complemented by pancake racing. This is said to have originated when a housewife in Olney, a small town in Buckinghamshire, where the most famous race is held to this day, was so busy making pancakes that she forgot the time until she heard the church bells ringing for the special confession service before Lent. She raced out of the house to church while still carrying her frying pan and pancake - tossing along the way - and since then we hold pancake races on the day.
Every year I try to make it to a pancake race, which is a bit tricky as pancake races take place in the middle of the working day, so I usually end up to one near the office. This year I had the opportunity to venture further afield, and ended up in the City of London, at the pancake race organised by the Worshipful Company of Poulters, one of the Livery Companies (one-time trade associations) based in the City of London.
Contestants competed in gowns and fancy dress, all wearing aprons and holding pancake pans. If you've spotted the guy in bandages above, worry not - his injuries were fake and not sustained during the race.
Ready...
Steady...
Run and toss!
Toss some more!
The winners in each category received a copper pan.
Whereas those who didn't do so well received a wooden spoon.
In case you're thinking this is too weird to be true, here is a short video of the grand final, with the winners of each category competing against each other:
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