Sherborne Pack Monday Fair and Teddy Roe’s Band

The name of the annual fair at Sherborne in Dorset is believed to derive from the fifteenth century masons finishing work in the magnificent Abbey in the town, who packed up their tools and celebrated to mark the end of their task. Certainly the event has been a fixture in the town’s calendar for hundreds of years. Today the huge fair has a wide variety of stalls selling everything from foodstuffs to toys, and a funfair, but the unique aspect which marks it out from other autumnal fairs around the UK is Teddy Roe’s Band. At midnight on the Sunday just before the fair starts, a parade makes its way around the streets, loudly banging pans and lids, whistling and generally making a cacophany fit to wake the dead. Named after the foreman of the Abbey workmen, Teddy Roe’s band was suppressed for many years due to its rowdiness but is once more well established as the real start of the fun! There is a definite feeling of anarchy and subversion about it as you march through the streets creating as much noise as you can in the otherwise deserted streets. Originally the fair was held at Michaelmas, but when the calendar was altered, the fair date moved into October and has stayed there ever since.

Helpful Hints

In 2025 the fair should be held on Monday 13th October with Teddy Roe’s Band at midnight on Sunday  12th.

Take something noisy with you! The walk takes around three-quarters of an hour, starting at the South end of Bristol Road and finishing near the Conduit, and an escort vehicle with flashing lights leads the way. The Coldharbour carpark is handy for the start.

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Thanks to Barbara Elsmore for the Fair photos.