Downton Cuckoo Fair is cancelled for 2024

An event which was first held nearly 500 years ago and attracts about 18,000 people to a rural village has been cancelled for 2024.

Organisers of the Downton Cuckoo Fair near Salisbury said the decision is down to a lack of volunteers and money.

Joanna Ramsay Horbury said "it was a really difficult decision", but key volunteer numbers have "dwindled".

She said costs have also risen, with £4,500 more required on top of running expenses of £38,000.

The fair - which is usually held in April - has been running in modern times since 1979 when it was re-instated, but the first official Cuckoo Fair was recorded in 1530.

Ms Horbury told BBC Radio Wiltshire: "We're really disappointed. Lots of local organisations rely on the Cuckoo Fair for their fundraising."

Organisers have looked at different options to make it work, including ticketing it, but that would involve locking down the village, something they do not want to do.

Many of the "key" volunteers they have been losing are involved in health and safety, which organiser Ms Horbury said the event "can't lose out on".

"We need to make sure that those who come to the fair are our top priority."

At a recruitment drive in September, they had some more people come forward and in response to the announcement on social media, a few extra have offered to help as well.

She added that people are "all very understanding".

"We're really hopeful we can make it go ahead for 2025. We want it to run for the benefit of the village for the next 40 years."

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