| Where: | Brightlingsea, Essex at the Hard (when on the boat) or at Colchester Oyster Fishery in East Mersea when it's read from dry land (formerly at Cudmore Grove County Park) |
| When: | First Friday in September |
| Time: | 10.30 approx for Proclamation reading at noon |
The Colne Oyster Fishery at Colchester dates back many hundreds of years and it is officially opened by the Mayor and Dignitaries on the first friday in September each year. The opening ceremony dates back to the mid sixteenth century and involves the reading of a tongue-twisting proclamation and the consumption of gin and gingerbread with toasts to the Queen, followed by an oyster lunch for invited guests. Depending on a range of circumstances including the seaworthiness of the Mayor, the officials in their regalia usually take to the waves aboard an oyster dredger followed by a flotilla of guests in smaller craft, or occasionally the ceremony may take place on dry land. The boat may need to be some distance out to sea if the tide is low, in which case you can watch the arrival of the dignitaries at the Hard and their embarkation but you won’t be able to hear the Proclamation from the shore; the best view of the boat when we attended was from the end of the row of beach huts.
Helpful Hints
In 2026 it should be on Friday September 4th, on land this year on the terrace of the Colchester Oyster Fishery. Check the link below for full details.
In 2019 the ceremony was on board the Hydrogen, departing from Brightlingsea Hard at around 11 am prior to the ceremony at noon, and the socially distanced ceremony in 2020 (without a public event) was on land at Cudmore Grove.
Click here for the Civic website and Mayor’s Office : https://www.new.colchester.gov.uk
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