JUMPING off Magdalen Bridge on May Day morning, Banbury’s hobby horse festival and the game of Aunt Sally are among Oxfordshire’s weirdest traditions.

But now the county could be about to lose one of its quirkiest rituals, the World Pooh Sticks Championships.

For 31 years the annual competition inspired by AA Milne’s Winnie the Pooh has attracted thousands of people to Day’s Lock at Little Wittenham.

Some 700 competitiors take it in turns to drop sticks off the bridge and “race” them to the other side.

Our top stories

But now organisers from The Rotary Club of Oxford Spires say the event has grown too popular for the limited space there.

They have already said this year’s contest in March will not happen at Little Wittenham, and are inviting suggestions for a new location.

President elect Karen Eveleigh, below, said: “We need to find a bridge over a flowing river, but it doesn’t have to be the Thames at all.

Oxford Mail:

“Little Wittenham is a very pretty village, and we just hope we can find somewhere else in the county or nearby to run a similar event.

“If it changes slightly that’s ok.”

Miss Eveleigh said organising the event had always been a challenge, but the decision to move had been prompted by the need for more parking space.

The Earth Trust charity, which owns the land that has been used as a car park, said that the use of the field was weather dependent and it could not guarantee it would be available for parking each year.

She said the event needed space for about 300 cars to park between 10.30am and 3pm.

The event raises thousands of pounds for the club’s chosen local and national charities each year.

The game was first played by the author and his son on a bridge in Ashdown Forest, East Sussex.

Anyone who has any suggestions is invited to get in touch via the website pooh-sticks.com

 

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.