History
This ceremony originally took place each With Monday before later transferred to the Spring Bank Holiday. Two possible origins have been proposed for the ceremony. The first is said that it evolved from a requirement for maintaining grazing rights on the common.
The second proposal is pagan origins for the custom of rolling objects down the hill. It is thought that bundles of burning brushwood were rolled down the hill to represent the birth of the New Year after winter. Connected with this belief is the traditional scattering of buns, biscuits and sweets at the top of the hill by the Master of Ceremonies. This is said to be a fertility rite to encourage the fruits of harvest. Since the fifteenth century the cheese has been rolled down the hill, and women, men, girls and boys compete for it in various races.
Each year the event becomes more and more popular with contestants coming from all across the world to compete or even simply to spectate.
In 1993, fifteen people were injured, four seriously, chasing cheeses down the one in three hill.
The 2011 event took place without management due to safety concerns over the number of people visiting the event, but it is hoped that it will continue to be held, following the launch of a 'Save The Cheese Roll' campaign. Despite the cancellation and lack of paramedics, around 500 people showed up in 2010 to hold some spontaneous races, with six time champion Chris Anderson winning again. No major injuries were reported.
On 24 March 2010, the organisers blamed backlashes that included death threats following an announcement of how the 2011 event would be run. The plans had been made to conduct the event under mounting pressure from the local council who stipulated it should include security, perimeter fencing to allow crowd control and spectator areas that would charge an entrance fee. The event proceeded without management.
"No-one's going to stop us doing it. They say it's not official but we are all Brockworth people and we're running the cheese today so it is official. We strongly believe in it." —Former winner Helen Thorpe in May 2011.At this stage the future of management of the event remains unknown.
"Since we announced an entry fee, we have been bombarded with so much hostility and criticism, much of it at a personal level, including accusations of profiteering and some of the committee have even received threats." —Cheese Rolling Committee spokesman Richard Jefferies speaking in March 2011.There used to be a similar tradition, much less frequently maintained, down the side of a coombe known as the Horse’s Manger on the White Horse of Uffington, Berkshire. A cart wheel was chased with a cheese as the prize.
Read more about this topic: Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling And Wake
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