| Where: | Whalton, Northumberland outside the Beresford Arms |
| When: | 4th July |
| Time: | 6pm until 9pm |
There seems to be some argument about spelling of the name for this annual fire custom, which takes place on the green just outside the Beresford Arms every 4th July, and has done for many years. It’s a local event with a small but fierce bonfire which the school children and crowd dance around followed by displays of morris dancing and music; when we went the dancing displays lasted around an hour and a half. Traditionally people jump through the flames, but nowadays that has ceased along with the burning of the Kern Baby, which was a human shaped corn dolly that used to be fed to the fire. Victorian photographer Sir Benjamin Stone captured images of both the fire and the Kern Baby, which inspired artist Faye Claridge to produce a giant sculpture displayed in the village in 2016, and in turn this has revived the tradition of making the fertility figure annually, though nowadays she’s displayed in the grounds in front of the village hall rather than consumed by the conflagration across the road. When we went in 2022 she was wearing gold wellies…
Helpful Hints
It’s always on 4th regardless of which day of the week it falls upon.
It’s easy to find- the pub is on the north side of the main village street. There are hard paths around the green. The Village Hall is on the opposite side of the road, a little to the East of the pub.
Click here for the village website page : http://whaltonvillage.org.uk/news-events/events
and here for the pub: https://www.facebook.com/BeresfordWhalton
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