LOCAL dignitaries were sent to the stocks and pelted with wet sponges at a Medieval Fair to raise money for Wallingford Museum.

Hundreds packed into the Kinecroft on Saturday to try their hand at medieval crafts, including spinning, basket-making and lace-making.

Knights in armour, ladies-in-waiting, a cook, a barber-surgeon, a smith, and an archer were among actors who brought the past to life. Others followed a trail around the town linking Wallingford’s modern shops with those of the past, discovering the origin of surnames.

Among those supporting the event was mayor Bernard Stone, dressed as a peasant, and the High Steward of Wallingford Sir Colin Imray and his wife Shirley, who presided over the stocks.

Museum curator Judy Dewey, co-ordinator of the event, said: “It’s important, because most people think of medieval castles as places of war, but medieval life was much more than people fighting each other.

“There was a whole way of life which we were trying to encourage people to understand.”

The museum has already raised £50,000 towards the £350,000 needed to build the extension, but construction, due to start this month, has been deferred until next year.