Stroud Wassail 2016

January 8th/9th

This year the Wassail will also include the International Mummers Festival.

The award winning mummers festival is an extraordinary event previously held in Gloucester and Bath.   Featuring workshops, symposium and lots of Mumming, bringing participants from across the UK.  Previous guest mummers have come from USA, Canada, Ireland and Spain.

Mummers groups large

 

Stroud Wassail on Video

A beautifully made programme about the Stroud Wassail

By Philip Booth of Stroud Community TV

Thank You!

Thank you to everyone who took part in the Stroud Wassail 2015, you made it awesome.Broads at the Museum

Special thanks to our supporters:

      • Stroud Subscription Rooms
      • Stroud Museum in the Park
      • Prince Albert, Rodborough
      • Single Gloucester Folk Archive Project.

Planning for the Stroud Wassail 2016 starts here.

Saturday January 9th 2016 – put it in your diary!

 

 

Stroud Wassail 10th Jan 2015

A new festival of winter traditions

Glos Waysailers

A new winter festival to wish you a healthy and prosperous new year. In the darkest days, the town will be brought to life with wassail songs, colourful costumes, music, morris dancing, wassail bowls, hobby horses and The Broad.

The origins of wassailing are over 1000 years old, as a toast to wish your companions good health. In the Stroud area this became a tradition of visiting neighbours around 12th night with a wassail bowl and a song, to wish them a prosperous new year. There are many wassail songs from the district, we will sing The Stroud Wassail.

broad wbw

Stroud Wassail features The Broad – a kind of hobby horse in the form of a cow.  This would accompany the wassailers.

There are opportunities for you to learn wassail songs, make costumes and join in the procession, and there will be lots of morris dancing to enjoy.

styxhey

The festival will take place in the streets of Stroud, Subscription Rooms Forecourt and the Museum in the Park.

Programme