Barsham Faire 1972
The first "Renaissance Pleasure Faire" was held in California in 1963. By the late 1960s similar events had been held in many other states. One English visitor later moved to East Anglia and when the idea of an event was first suggested he told his friends about a medieval fair he had attended while in the United States...
Barsham was initially planned as a fund raiser for the East Anglian Arts Trust but was so successful it became the main focus of their activities.
The medieval theme meant:
- No electric supply (for lighting or amplification)
- All stalls and structures hand built.
- All products made by stallholders
- No vehicles on site during the fair
- Fair-goers were encouraged to attend in medieval costume (loosely interpreted, the focus was on participation not historical re-enactment).
The first Barsham has been described as ‘little more than an imaginative village fete’ but it was a fete which evoked such pleasure and joy in those that were there that the following year ten times as many people turned up.
CRAFSTMEN AND ENTERTAINERS
Stalls at the Faire include the following:
Aldringham Craft Market various crafts
K.C. Allen pottery
P.J. Bearman leatherwork
Band of Change leatherwork
Beccles Gallery prints
C.A. Boyd brass rubbings and flower collages
John Chipperfield pottery
Susan and Ian Copeman candles
Nick Douglas pottery and enamel
The Ellis Family hobby horses, sweetmeats, enamels
Gazette Bookshop bookstall
R.W. Gilbert jewellery, candles
Alistair Hull knots
John and Mary Kiddell organic foods
David Kemp jewellery
Larling Community Centre bread and cheese
Francisca Nielson dolls, paintings
Kay Pate repoussage, collage, toys
Kate Russell woodcuts, miniatures
Martin Roche pancakes
Sheila and Sandra herbalists
Lillian Scholes enamels, costume jewellery
Margaret Smith toys
Steve and Cherry soft toys
Jane Seppings dried flowers
Trudy and Mandy beadwork and smocks
Zena Tibbenham leather, crochet, jewellery, scarves, etc.
Gillian Thomson corn dollies and other crafts
(A number of other craftsmen have taken stalls too late to appear on this list)
Entertainers at the Faire include the following:
MUSICIANS
Bridewell Consort - recorders, cornets, crumhorns, gemshorn, nakers, kortholt, curtal, racket, lute and cittern.
The Kent Players (leader Margaret Christie) - voices, fiddle, guitar, recorder, oboe, shaum, viols, percussion, keyboard.
The Potters - fiddles, concertina,.organ lute.
The Abel Family of Kessingland (four members) - oboe, bassoon, voice, clarinet, violin, recorders.
The Mutford and Wangford Group - recorders etc.
POETS
Sarah Lee Barber Andrew Bell
DRAMA
Lowestoft Theatre Centre and others.
BARSHAM CRIER
Peter Hatto (Southwold Town Crier)
I don’t remember the dates of the fairs I was at. The first (which may have been the first) I remember had the (then) radical idea of letting you in free if you dressed in medieval clothing. We dropped a trip and went back in time. I don’t remember seeing Bruce Lacey specifically at that fair – I just vaguely remember seeing him at ‘the’ fairs, doing his thing.
At this ‘first’ fair I remember being, late at night and through til dawn, in a big circle of vans/tents or similar with amongst others the global village trucking company. Gentle music and Wine in demi-johns passed round as was a huge jar of walnuts. A nice way to come down off a trip.
In the morning was the first time I saw anyone ‘trucking’ – there were these characters just walking back and forth , leaning as far back as possible and taking the longest steps they could, but in a very relaxed and rather impressive way. I asked them what they were doing and they said ‘Trucking’.
We went to all the other Albion fairs after that until they got a bit commercial. Last time I saw Bruce Lacey perform though was (if I remember correctly) in Earlham Park, Norwich. (or it might have been Tuttington?)That’s the only time I got some snaps of him, which I’m happy to share (provided they’re not used commercially)
I remember ‘Bagism’, with possibly Jill Lacey? Lovely lass whoever she was: we’d put our heads in a two ended bag and ‘be’ the other person. Quite blissful. Hypno Swan