Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals

Subject: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,Old Caledonian
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 01:03 PM

I'm researching unusual and traditional games and contests that used to be held at Folk Festivals.

As well as welly-throwing and the like, I know there used to be a shirt-throwing contest at English festivals in the 50s and early 60s.

Can anyone shed any light on this custom please and what became of it?

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,The Devonian
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 02:04 PM

I think the famous shirt-throwing contest first took place at village fetes in the west country. Amateur soccer players and the like used to compete to see who could throw their shirt the furthest. I believe the winner was then presented with a yard of ale. I vaguely remember a shirt-throwing contest being held at the Sidmouth Folk Festival for several years in the late 50s and early 60s with morris dancers throwing shirts decorated with badges and insignia along the prom. Shame it appears to have died out. It was a colourful and enjoyable contest.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: Little Robyn
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 02:20 PM

Dwyle flonking!
They did it at the Hawke's Bay(New Zealand) festivals in the late 60s, tho' I never indulged.
Robyn

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 02:21 PM

Dwiles were flonked at early Chester Festivals but I guess that is well researched and nailed at the door of one M Bentine?

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: TheBigPinkLad
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 05:54 PM

Rhubarb Thrashing. For more on this essential pursuit visit the lamentably defunct Stackridge

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: Blowzabella
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 06:06 PM

Since we had to combine two festivals in one, the Lancaster Maritime Festival now includes the National Sedan Chair Carrying Championships - great fun (to watch!)

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 06:28 PM

Five-a-side football? I remember a great game at Cambridge one year, with the Saw Doctors.
................

Technology can change things. I remember a friend who entered a tripe-throwing contest, and wiped out the opposition by using tripe straight out of the freezer.
............................

Also in Cambridge Folk Festival for many years there was the last night,late night, ritual of young men making suicidal leaps over and into piles of metal folding chairs, while the onlookers chanted the theme from the Dam Busters. Very primitive stuff, blood and bruises and the odd broken limb.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,From the Cam
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 07:39 PM

Tripe throwing was very popular at several festivals especially when musicians entered into the spirit of things.

I recall a young Keith Moon playing with a skiffle band at Clitheroe in the early 60s and inviting people to throw tripe at his drum kit. He then mashed it in the cymbals, spliced it with his drum sticks and deposited it back over the heads of the audience. Those were the days.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,Alf Tranter
Date: 10 Dec 04 - 11:42 PM

I won the shirt-throwing contest at Sidmouth in 1958. The skill was in rolling your shirt into as tight a ball as possible before hurling it along a section of the prom measured out with chalk lines. I believe my winning distance was some 32 yards, not bad, try throwing your own shirt 32 yards and you will discover it is not easy. I was presented with a yard of ale in the hotel bar opposite the prom and was expected to down it in one go.

Thank you to Stroller for drawing my attention to this website. The shirt-throwing contest used to attract quite a crowd at Sidmouth, more than for many of the performing artistes, but I thought the contest was long-forgotten now.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: Leadfingers
Date: 11 Dec 04 - 05:19 AM

In these days of political correctness and over concern about 'safety' I wonder what would happen if a festival tried to revive the Childrens Activities that were a regular feature of Bracknell Festival . What would a safety officer make of two hundred kids of ALL sizes playing British Bulldog on the terrace with just two adults keeping perfect control ?

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: gnomad
Date: 11 Dec 04 - 10:00 AM

I have seen the odd dummy spitting contest, surprisingly popular. Most of the participants were morris men working their way towards being unfrocked, after which they would, of course, be qualified to try dwyle flonking.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,fritha
Date: 11 Dec 04 - 10:09 AM

well now those type of games seem to have been forgotten. Now it seems to be the trusty drinking games (obviously whilst off ur head)! great fun they are as well!

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,The Old Mariner
Date: 11 Dec 04 - 08:42 PM

A version of the famous Sidmouth shirt-throwing contest was also held at several festivals with a maritime theme in the mid-60s. The shirt had to be a genuine sailor's shirt complete with collar and shirt-throwing competitors had to have proven nautical connections. No professional sportsmen were allowed to participate though there was fierce debate in Portsmouth one year as to whether an international yachtsman (Alec Rose I believe) could make a ceremonial throw to launch the contest. The prize for the winner remained the same - a yard of ale.

Great rivalries between towns and cities grew up with naval teams from Chatham, Portsmouth and Plymouth taking on teams of merchant seamen from Glasgow and Liverpool.

Sadly the Navy eventually decided that Field Gun runs were more likely to improve the fitness of their participants than shirt-throwing contests though to this day the shirt thrown by Gunner LeMarque is still visible in a display case to anyone visiting the HMS Victory exhibition in Portsmouth Dockyard.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,Publican
Date: 11 Dec 04 - 10:49 PM

Traditional pub games such as skittles and shove ha'penny often feature at CAMRA Beer Festivals.

As CAMRA is doing it's bit to keep these traditional pastimes alive, surely folk festivals organisers should also resurrect the practice of including traditional games in their programmes?

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: LesB
Date: 12 Dec 04 - 07:02 AM

There used to be the 'wars of the roses' at Whitby each year. When the Lancs & Yorks contingent uesd to have a daily contest such as, relays up the Abbey steps involving beer, a tiddly wink contest ( a number of pints were lined up & you tiddle your wink into the pint, which you had to drink in order to move on), on one famous occassion the late Tony Wilson swallowed his tiddle amid much choking & application of dried bread, he swore unto his dying day that the tiddle never saw the light of day again. And the beach cricket match, which still survives as Yorks v The Rest of The World.
Cheers
Les

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,Roger Hayes
Date: 13 Dec 04 - 01:58 AM

Folk Punk band Blyth Power host The Tallington Ashes every year - an anarchic mix of cricket, trainspotting and music in a pub garden overlooking the East Coast mainline. Does this qualify?

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: Sooz
Date: 13 Dec 04 - 02:29 AM

At Wath upon Dearn festival they have bun flinging. They throw bread rolls off the church tower. Its great fun watching the Morris Men competing with the local children for who can catch and eat most!

PS This is absolutely genuine and funded by a trust fund from some old dear who left a sum in her will to "feed the poor of the parish".

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,Maurice Mann
Date: 13 Dec 04 - 08:59 PM

Tis a sad day indeed when the Morris Men have to fight tiny kiddies for scraps to eat.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,Missy
Date: 14 Dec 04 - 08:52 PM

One of the finest traditional games used to be the EmEm2TheBar, performed at countless folk festivals over the years.

Basically you lined-up a team of hot and sweaty Morris Men just after a typically rumbustious performance.

Then you lined-up another team of hot,sweaty and thirsty locals, ideally very large brutes from the local tug-o-war team, rugby club or similar.

Butch, grizzly, ex-marine commandos could substitute at times.

Then you cordially invited both sides to make their way to the bar and see who could get served first. Hence the name and battle-cry EmEm2The Bar - Morris Men to the Bar.

Always entertaining. In small village inns, a bit like being in the Black Hole of Calcutta.

Sadly the game has been dying out, killed-off by huge Weatherspoons pubs and the likes where the bar is long and service so brisk that it's just no contest fighting to get served first anymore.

Subject: RE: Folklore: Traditional Games at Folk Festivals
From: GUEST,Sussex Lad
Date: 15 Dec 04 - 09:35 PM

But I think it's revived at countless Morris Displays and Mummers Plays over the Xmas holiday.