Woodford Feast is an old tradition which is believed to
be linked to the patronal festival of the St Mary's Church. "Feast Sunday"
is the second Sunday after the 29th June (Feast of St Peter and St Paul).
In
the 1800s children were given a week off school for the celebrations which
was also marked by a visit from the fair. This whole week holiday was
reduced to a two week holiday following the First World War and continued
until the mid 1960's.
Taylors Bioscope visited in
the late 1800's and early 20th Century being replaced by Thurston's Fair - a
tradition that is continued today by John Bugg Funfairs. The Fete and Flower Festival are
later additions.
The first Flower Festival was held in 1964 and the
Parish Magazine for July 1964 reports it as follows.
"We have decided to experiment this year and make a
special occasion of Feast Sunday by combining it with a Floral Festival.
This means that we should be grateful for gifts of flowers of all kinds in
abundance and that the Church must be decorated on Friday 10th
July – we hope under the direction of experts from Kettering. The Church
will be closed on Friday after the decorations have been completed and
opened at 2.00pm on Saturday remaining open until 10.00pm.
On Sunday it will be closed after the morning services and re-opened at
2.00pm. We hope that the Thrapston Band will accompany the hymns at evensong
and that it might be possible to arrange for afternoon teas to be served in
the Rectory Garden on Saturday 11th – if wet in the Church Hall.
Mr and Mrs Carey Wilson have kindly consented to open their garden to
visitors on the Sunday night. No charge will be made to view either the
church or garden but voluntary contributions will of course be expected."
Note that there is no
reference to the Fete although the Scouts did tend to hold their own fete
one week after the Feast weekend during the 1960s.
Click here for this years
programme
or
here for more background information
