It wasn’t always fun: now Southam mop delights kids
Layla and Jessica O'Callaghan won goldfish at the annual Southam Mop Fair on Monday. MHLC-15-10-12 Southam Mop Oct67
A SOUTHAM tradition marked its 785th anniversary on Monday when Southam held its annual mop fair.
The town centre was closed to traffic and schoolchildren were each given a free ride as part of the event, which dates back to 1227, after King Henry III granted Southam a charter making it a town and allowing four market fairs and weekly markets.
It later evolved into a ‘mop’ fair at which servants and farm labourers would seek to be hired for the forthcoming year, wearing badges such as mops to denote their trade.
Southam mayor Cllr Mike Gaffney opened the fair at 3.30pm and cut the first slice of Southam Lions’ hog roast.
The now held to raise money for local charities and Bromford Housing’s food bank project, but which has its origins in an ox-roast held to feed those hiring and being hired.
Lions’ ‘roaster’ Jim Steele said “only the bones” were left after just half an hour, with around 270 pork baps sold and £1,000 raised.
Cllr Gaffney said: “Everybody enjoyed it. All in all it was a very succesful Mop.”
· See more pictures in Friday’s Courier.
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Weather for Leamington
Sunday 19 May 2013
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Cloudy
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