Weird TraditionsTalking with a friend yesterday about school dinners, she suddenly said, "We had to march into the dining room behind the School Band... except on Thursdays." Since all of us were now staring, she qualified this with, "...on Thursdays there was no wind section. It was a tradition."
What weird stuff have you been made to do "because it's a tradition."
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chthonic, Thu 28 Jul 2005, 11:11)
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shrove tuesday traditionEvery year i stock up with bandges and plasters ready to take part in the Atherstone ball game
Every Pancake Day, windows in Atherstone are boarded up and shoppers dive for cover. Why? It's time for the famous ball game
Hundreds of people gathering to knock seven bells out of one another in an attempt to grab hold of a heavy leather ball - and run the risk of being dismembered in the process.
A complete free-for-all played along the main street of Atherstone town. The ball is decorated with red, white and blue ribbons and is filled with water to make it too heavy to kick far. The match starts at 3pm when the ball is thrown from a window of the Three Tuns Inn and continues until about 5pm. However the ball may legitimately be deflated or hidden after 4.30pm. There are no teams and no goals, though in the last century the match was played between a team from Warwickshire and one from Leicestershire! Whoever is able to hang onto the ball at the end of the game not only wins the game but is allowed to keep the ball as well
This traditional Shrove Tuesday 'ball game' has been held annually since the early 12th Century and is one of Atherstone's claims to fame. The origin of the game, in the reign of King John, is thought to have been a "Match of Gold that was played between the Warwickshire Lads and the Leicestershire Lads on Shrove Tuesday".
The 'ball' used is specially made each year by Gilbert of Rugby, who are world famous for their rugby balls.
It is 27 inches in diameter and weighs four pounds.
(, Mon 1 Aug 2005, 21:56, Reply)
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