Oyez! Oyez! Oyez! Town criers from across the country with something to shout about will descend on the West Yorkshire market town of Otley on Sunday, September 23 to take part in the First Otley Open Town Crier competition.
The town, nestled between cosmopolitan Leeds and the Yorkshire Dales, is home to its own award-winning town crier and 2017 national champion, Otley Bellman Terry Ford, who will welcome criers from Newport to Nuneaton and Skegness to Sleaford to take part in the competition.
Held on the same weekend as the renowned Otley Folk Festival, the event will see 11 town criers in their finest regalia plus their consorts parading from the town council offices at Otley Core on Orchard Gate to the town’s historic Market Place for the start of the competition at 11.30am.
Competing under Loyal Company of Town Criers rules, contestants will be required to offer their ‘home cry’ in the morning, followed by an afternoon ‘subject cry’ on the 300th anniversary of Thomas Chippendale, the world-renowned cabinetmaker who was born in Otley in the summer of 1718.
Proceedings will close with an awards presentation and the chance for members of the public to have a go at ‘crying’ themselves.
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