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The May Queen Festival was a tradition across England, originating from the High Middle Ages in England. The May Queen was also known as the “Summer Queen” and her duty was to begin the May Day celebrations.
In Lymm it started in Victorian times in 1889 it was part of a temperance drive and was called the Oughtrington Bank of Hope. It involved all the villages that made up Lymm: Oughtrington, Heatley, Statham and Booths Hill. Each village had its own May Queen Committee. The May Queen event stopped due to the Second World War. During 1947 the May Queen was restarted and apart from a serious weather incident and Covid 19 the festival has continued with a now small, but very enthusiastic committee.
The May Queen and the Rose Queen plus the retinue are chosen every year in March, before the event. Any one who lives in Lymm can apply and the age limit is 12.
Every year a theme is chosen and this is reflected in the procession which contains bands, dancers, school floats and floats from local organisations.
The Procession usually leaves mid-day from Statham Avenue and it goes through the Village. Early afternoon the May and Rose queen are crowned on the May Queen field, near the centre of the Village. The event is a fun event for all the family – there is a fair ground, an area for young children and stalls and events to suit all ages. There is also entertainment for all in the two arenas.
As with all community events, the Lymm May Queen festival is dependent on a lot of volunteers who make the event a success. We need volunteers on the day to help with activities such as marshalling the streets for the parade, helping with setting up the field, clearing down, and selling tickets. We provide all training and equipment, so if you’d like to help out and help ensure the Lymm May Queen festival continues to be a success year after year, please get in touch!
