TL2797 : Plough boys - Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival 2013
taken 12 years ago, near to Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, England
The ancient Fenland tradition of plough boys collecting money and gifts in the streets on the Tuesday following Plough Monday has now evolved into a week-long festival in the market town of Whittlesey (Whittlesea) in Cambridgeshire. On the second Saturday in January each year, a Straw Bear and a couple of smaller bears parade around the market square and streets on a route that encompasses many of the public houses in the town. Numerous and diverse folk dance teams and entertainers fill the streets and vast quantities of drink are consumed, causing many of the eccentric merrymakers to be even more eccentric. See the official web site here Link
Assorted videos of this annual festival can be found in these pages Link