Iconic fair rides into 400th year
BBCA historic city fair is celebrating its 400th anniversary.
St Giles' Fair in Oxford was originally held in 1625 when it was a parish festival to celebrate the feast of the patron saint of the same name.
The event is held on the Monday and Tuesday following the first Sunday after St Giles' Day - 1 September - and attracts thousands of people from across the county.
Its a milestone for the showmen too, with St Giles' marking the start of the "backend" season, a busy period for the fairground community.
The fair has evolved over the centuries. It was a toy fair in the 18th Century and by the 19th Century it was a general children's fair.
The Museum of Oxford describes how it became a "great annual holiday for the working people of Oxfordshire" in the 1800s.
The fair grew during the late Victorian times to be the funfair it is today - full of rides, soft toys and food.
St Giles' tenant Joey Noyce, owner of the intimidating Sky Flyer ride, and former chairman of the London and Home Counties section of the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain, gave the opening speech at the 2024 event.
Mr Noyce told the BBC: "My grandfather first attended St Giles' in 1954. It was his favourite. My father always looked forward to coming here, I’ve looked forward to coming here. It’s a such an iconic fair."
He says with its unique setting there is "no other fair, not just in the UK, but in Europe, that can match Oxford St Giles'".
Mr Noyce, 55, who has attended since he was a child, added that despite the increase in "white knuckle" rides in recent years, traditional attractions such as the stalls and bumper cars are as popular as ever.
He says: "Generations come back to play on the same games, to ride on the same rides, to buy a toffee apple from the same stall, because a lot of the showmen that have attended go back generations as well."
Maria Forrest, from Witney, who has been coming to St Giles' for 50 years and runs a rifle range, describes it as "a way of life".
"This is what our great-grandparents did, it’s what our parents did, what we do, my children, my grandchildren, we’re all doing the same thing," she explained.
She said though much has changed, such as the rides running via computer, and customers going from cash, to card, to phone, "we still love doing what we’re doing".
Steward Charles Preston thinks the turnout from teenagers has decreased over the years, as they are drawn away by other modern-day distractions.
But as far as St Giles' goes: "I hope it carries on for another 400 years."
Tommy Wilson, who is in charge of several rides, described himself as a "seventh generation" showman.
"We’ve been coming to St Giles' from the mid-1800s, and that was my great-great grandmother Eliza Ball," he said.
"So we’ve been coming here for a long, long time.
"St Giles’ is probably one of the most prestigious fairs in the country simply because of where it is.
"How can you not be impressed when closing Oxford city centre for three days for a fair?"
The fair runs from 11:00 to 23:00 BST on Monday and Tuesday.
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