Events of Britain

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Battle of Sedgemoor - a failed coup

The Battle of Sedgemoor marked the climactic failure of the Monmouth Rebellion in the 17th century, wherein the Duke of Monmouth (an illegitimate son of Charles II) unsuccessfully rallied supporters in the South West of England to try to overthrow King James II.

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Braemar Gathering - traditional sports beneath the mountains

The Braemar Gathering in the Highlands of Scotland is arguably the best known Highland Games in the country. This annual festival is held at the village of Braemar on the first Saturday in September and is traditionally attended by the British Royal Family.

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The World Coal Carrying Championship - bags of fun for the Bank Holiday!

Amongst the weird and wonderful traditions of the British Easter Holiday is the World Coal Carrying Championships. Each Easter Monday, the small village of Gawthorpe, near Ossett in West Yorkshire, is host to this energetic competition. The event consists of Men’s, Women’s and Children’s races. Men carry 50kg of coal and women 20kg in weight.

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The World Worm Charming Championships, held in Cheshire annually

The small English village of Willaston, on the Wirral Peninsula, Cheshire hosts a yearly competition known as the World Worm Charming Championships, where competitors come from far and wide to try and convince as many worms as they can to rise to the surface.

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A hot cross bun tradition at the Widow's Son pub

The Widow's Son pub in Bromley-by-Bow, East London, has its own version of celebrating the hot cross bun on Good Friday. Every year, on this date, a sailor from the Royal Navy puts a bun in the net hanging above the bar to continue an old tradition.

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The Shipping Forecast - a very British tradition

The Shipping Forecast is a radio broadcast of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles. The unique and distinctive presentation style of these broadcasts has led to their attracting an audience much wider than that directly interested in maritime weather conditions.

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West Country Illuminated Carnivals - brightening up November

The West Country Carnival Circuits are an annual celebration featuring a parade of illuminated carts in Somerset. The celebration dates back to the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 and takes place over several weeks in November. The purpose is to raise money for local charities.

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Cooper's Hill annual Cheese-Rolling contest, Gloucestershire

The Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake is an annual event held on the Spring Bank Holiday at Cooper's Hill, near Gloucester. Traditionally a round of Double Gloucester cheese has been sent rolling down a 200-yard-long hill, and participants race down after it. The winner is awarded the cheese, though a replica is now used for the actual chase!

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Dorset's nettle eating contest

One of the strangest eating competitions in the country takes place every year at the Bottle Inn, a 16th-century public house at Marshwood in Dorset. This is the World Nettle Eating Championship.

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Up Helly Aa - Shetland's annual fire festivals

Up Helly Aa is a fire festival held annually from January to March in various communities in the Shetland Islands, Scotland to mark the end of the Yule season. The largest festival is held in Lerwick, Shetland's capital.

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Bristol International Balloon Fiesta

The Bristol International Balloon Fiesta is held annually in a park on the outskirts of Bristol. Teams from the UK and other parts of the world bring their hot air balloons to the site and participate in mass ascents where as many as 100 balloons may launch at a time.

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The Turnip Prize: satirising art

The Turnip Prize is a spoof UK award satirising the Tate Gallery's annual Turner Prize by rewarding deliberately bad (but amusing) modern art such as "Collywobbles" (a dog on a jelly), pictured. Organised by a village pub in Somerset, it is seen as an example of classic British irreverence to establishment values.

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The Marmalade Festival - a tasty celebration

A great British culinary tradition is celebrated annually at the Marmalade Awards & Festival at Dalemain House near Penrith in Cumbria. Normally taking place in March, the competitive challenge attracts entries from all over the world.

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All Saints' Day

These days, Halloween celebrations are more or less over in one night. But in the Christian calendar of centuries past, Halloween was just the beginning of three days of commemoration as part of a religious event known as All Saints’ Day.

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Kettlewell Scarecrow Festival

Amost every August since 1994, the village of Kettlewell in North Yorkshire has been invaded by an army of whimsical straw men that establish themselves in gardens, on rooftops, and in hidden corners.

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Midsummer's Day in Britain - solstice celebration

The longest day of the year has been marked by traditional celebrations in Britain since ancient times. But there are different interpretations on when "Midsummer" formally occurs, and, in fact, in astronomical terms, the summer season actually STARTS in mid-June.

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St George's Day - the English patron saint who came from Turkey

Saint George's Day, also called the Feast of Saint George, on 23rd April, is the national day of the patron saint of England. This mythical figue is also the patron saint of several other countries including Bulgaria, Georgia, Portugal and parts of Spain.

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Scotland's annual "Loony Dook"

The Loony Dook is an annual event held on New Years' Day in which people dive into the freezing waters of the Firth of Forth at South Queensferry (north of Edinburgh), often in fancy dress. It has spawned some other equally mad festive swims elsewhere,

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The Blackpool Illuminations

In recent years, several stately homes have extended the tourism year by offering illuminated trails on winter evenings. Some towns and cities have also followed suit with winter light shows. But Blackpool was the trailblazer. Its famous Illuminations were founded in 1879.

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Sussex Bonfire Traditions

Many people will have heard of the spectacular annual bonfire night parades that take place in Lewes in East Sussex. However, Lewes is just one of the towns and villages on a circuit of bonfire festivities in the area. These include Hastings, Battle and Rye.

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The Turner Prize: great art or rubbish?

The Turner Prize is an annual prize presented to a British visual artist, and is named after the English painter J. M. W. Turner. Since its beginnings in 1984 it has become the UK's most publicised - and often controversial - art award. The award is for work in all visual media and the prize is £40,000.

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Mothering Sunday

Is it Mother's Day or Mothering Sunday? We take a look at the origins of this annual event ...

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The Snowdrop Festival, Shepton Mallet

The Somerset town of Shepton Mallet enlivens the quiet, dark days of mid February with an annual Snowdrop Festival in honour of James Allen, "the snowdrop king".

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