Summer brings with it the very best of Britishness. There are a multitude of village fetes, fairs, produce shows, and ever since the Queen's Jubilee in 2012 we have started a tradition of having annual street parties.
I decided to limit my words for this blog post and rely heavily on the huge number of photos I have taken over the years. Following are a few of my favourite summer activities.
The Albury Produce show. July 15th 2017.
Held every year up on Albury cricket ground, this one is very local and what I love most about it is the good old fashioned village produce tent. Neighbouring families compete to grow the biggest pumpkin and plot for months how to grow the straightest carrot. It is a pleasant thing to browse the rows of homemade jams, pickles, marmalades, tarts, pies and cakes. I wind my way slowly through the floral displays, browsing the children's contributions of miniature gardens or vegetable people as shown below.
This corn on the cob looks very pleased with himself.
A slightly more laid back rastafarian apple resting its arms around a sleeping potato.
This vegetable family is definitely on steroids, the kids probably need a haircut and Mum looks exhausted!
Who would have thought it, even a judgement on the quality of the locally raised free range eggs! There's no hiding the naked truth of the cracked egg. (I like mine with rich orange egg yolks.)
Another good local village activity = Abinger Medieval Fayre. June 10th 2017. A great place to see Knights, Lords, fair Maidens and Monks. Lots of mead to drink, hay bales to be thrown and rats to be splatted. The afternoon finishes with some pig racing.
Other activities that abound at village fairs are the politically incorrect Punch and Judy Show where Punch beats his wife up with a wooden stick! Croquet on the lawn and if there is any water nearby, the obligatory duck race!
You can always expect to be rained on. Dress for sunshine and showers.
There should be a barbecue and sometimes even a hog roast.
Expect to be shouted at through a microphone and give orders with military precision!
Something about Britain in the summer and the fact we will get wet brings out the best in us. People relax and go slightly crazy. What might seem strange on any other day is perfectly acceptable at a village fete. This was Albury Parks Jubilee party where the Union Jack wig was a particular hit!
Petworth Park have their own Fete in the park. ( Photos from a few years ago when the theme was
World War 1. )
This year the fete in the Park will be held on the 8th July.
Yachts alongside Petworth Park lake.
The craze for bunting has taken off. Here is Shere decked out in all her glory.
Shere Street Party in 2017 will be on 17th June. Bring a chair, table and your own food and come and join in.
If you are lucky there might be some locally brewed ale on sale.
And all the fun of a tug of war.
The village allotments join in the celebrations with scarecrows patriotically decked out.
And to end it all, how about a nice game of Bingo and a sing along to Jerusalem!
"It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all."
Laura Ingalls Wilder