World Black Pudding Throwing Championship — Sunday September 9, 2012 — at The Royal Oak, Bridge Street, Ramsbottom (near Manchester in England)
This event, held the second Sunday of September every year, stems from the ancient rivalry between Lancashire and Yorkshire. Participants meet at The Royal Oak pub to throw Black Puddings at a stack of Yorkshire Puddings piled on a 20-feet tall plinth.
Legend tells it the event originated during the War of Roses, a war fought spasmodically 1455-1485. Two rival branches of the Royal House of Plantagenet, the House of Lancaster and the House of York, were fighting each other. The troops ran out of traditional military ammunition. So they threw food.
These days contestants come from England, Scotland, Wales, South Africa, Australia and many other countries.
Here’s the official website: http://calendarcustoms.com/articles/world-black-pudding-throwing-championships/
London 2012 Olympics
There’s a movement afoot for Black Pudding Throwing to be an event in the upcoming London 2012 Olympics. Click here to read an article about this in The Bolton News. Click here to read about it in Wikipedia.
