Cooper's hill Cheese Rolling and wake

Coopers Hill Cheese Chase


I had to put this one here, because I love the thought of men chassing a big cheese down a hill  

The Event is so named after the name of the area it takes place - Cooper's Hill near Gloucester. From the top of this Hill a Double Gloucester cheese is rolled and the contestants must either catch the cheese or get to the bottom of the Hill first. The cheese has a one second head and can reach 70 mph, it is rarely ever caught.

It takes place in Springtime around May.

The event itself possibly dates back to Pre Roman Britain or at least Roman times. It dates back at least 200 years. There are suggestions that it was supposed to represent chasing the sun (possibly trying to bring forth summer) and also a Pagan healing ritual. Though there isn't much accurate information about the event.

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The event itself was actually cancelled in 2010 but that created an uproar with fans and in the years since an unofficial cheese rolling has been taking place instead.
"While the Gloucestershire Cheese Rolling has a history dating back to at least the 1800s, health and safety concerns saw the event officially cancelled since 2010, creating local and even international uproar from fans of the local tradition. But that hasn’t stopped loyal competitors taking to the hill, and thousands of spectators showing up, to create their own unofficial versions of the world-famous spectacular over the last four years." The full ariticle about this can be viewed at the following link: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Next Cheese Rolling Date:
26th May 2014