'Quintessentially British' -- maypole milestone is celebrated in Wellow

The weather stayed sunny and fine and thousands flocked to the picturesque village green to enjoy a day of entertainment, activities and attractions that included the second big coronation of the year after King Charles III – the crowning of Wellow’s May queen!

Although the custom dates back to 1836, this year was the 100th of recorded and documented maypole dancing in the village.

Those records show that, back in 1923, 13-year-old Mabel Bowman was crowned May queen by an illustrious guest, the Marchioness Of Titchfield, Ivy Cavendish-Bentinck.

The marchioness was the wife of the Marquis of Titchfield, the sitting Conservative MP for Newark and heir to the Welbeck Estate, William Cavendish-Bentinck. He had been invited to Wellow to open a new memorial hall in honour of the men in the village who had fought during the First World War.

Fast forward to 2023 and it was the turn of another Conservative politician, Coun Scott Carlton, county councillor for Sherwood Forest division, to sing the praises of the event.

Coun Carlton, who made a financial donation to help with the costs of the day, said: “It was perhaps the most quintessentially British thing you could ever think of.

"The maypole and its traditions are very important to the social fabric of Wellow and must be preserved.

"The weather was brilliant and the event delivered a much-needed boost to the businesses and charitable organisations present.”

The new May queen is 16-year-old Charlotte Baugh, who was chosen after the usual secret ballot among Wellow residents.

Maypole day is a strong tradition within Charlotte’s family because she has a grandfather, an aunt, sisters and cousins who have all taken part, while both Jacqui Baugh (1996) and Amy Baugh (1998) have been May queens. Charlotte, whose chosen charity for the year is the Motor Neurone Disease Association, was crowned by the retiring queen, Ellie Wilson.

Ellie had been forced to wait three years to take up the position after the maypole day was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic and lockdowns.

But if Monday is anything to go by, Wellow’s trademark event is very much alive and kicking again.

It was opened by the Ollerton Town Drum Corps before visitors revelled in the annual spectacle of children dancing around the unique 17-metre high maypole, painted red, white and blue,

The rest of the day featured live music with singer Annabelle Elizabeth, Morris dancing, stalls and exhibits, a raffle and tombola, street performers Medieval Maniax, Punch and Judy shows, children’s swingboats, hot and cold food, ice creams and Wellow’s famous cake stall.

Souvenir programmes were available to buy, while visitors could also peruse a display boards, showing historic photos from previous maypole days and, in a nod to the 1923 event, a tribute to Wellow’s war heroes.

Among the visitors was Vivien Anderson, who commented: “What a day! Well done to the committee for organising such a lovely event.”

That organising committee is headed by villagers Phil Lawson and his partner, Pippa Slater, who took on the roles of co-chair six years ago, since when the maypole day has flourished.

Another member of the committee, archivist Janet Carr, summed up Monday’s event by saying: “We had a great time. The weather could not have been better. There was a very good turnout, and it was a brilliant day.”