Best British Events: September 2019
Stuck for ideas to keep the family entertained this month? Here are our top tips for classic, weird and wonderful British events in September, from car racing to black pudding throwing.
Braemar Gathering – 7 September
The biggest event in the Highland Games series, Aberdeenshire’s Braemar Gathering features pipe bands and Highland dancers alongside the athletes. Founded in 1832, it is regularly attended by the Royal Family. The Queen first attended in 1933 (at 7 years old) and continues to do so to this date. Last year, she conducted the grand opening of the World Highland Games Centre.
Goodwood Revival – 13-15 September
The Goodwood Estate in West Sussex hosts many horse and motor races, but the pick of the season is the Goodwood Revival. The circuit’s post-war heyday from 1948 to 1966 is celebrated as famous drivers take a spin in classic cars, while visitors don vintage frocks and suits.
World Black Pudding Throwing Championships – 8 September
The historic War of the Roses rivalry between Yorkshire and Lancashire comes to a jolly conclusion at the World Black Pudding Throwing Championships. Crowds line the streets of Ramsbottom in Lancashire to watch competitors lob black puddings (a traditional blood sausage popular in Lancashire) at Yorkshire puddings piled on a 20-foot high plinth.
The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance – 9 September
The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance features 12 performers wearing Tudor costume and antlers, dancing to the music of a melodeon player. The Staffordshire folk ritual began in Anglo-Saxon times and commemorates the granting of hunting rights to villages in the nearby forest.
Last Night of the Proms – 14 September
Dedicated ‘Prommers’ have been swaying along to the annual season of classical music at London’s Royal Albert Hall since 1895. Eight weeks of concerts culminate in the Last Night of the Proms, a gala performance featuring singalong favourites with a focus on British composers – and vigorous flag-waving.
Gurning World Championships – 20-21 September
The person who can pull the ugliest face is rewarded in the Gurning World Championships. The Cumbrian contest is part of the town’s crab fair, which began in 1267, when the lord of the manor gave crab apples to the locals. Other activities at the fair include horse and pony jumping.