The Penkhull Wassail
The Penkhull Wassail is an annual event organised by Domesday Morris. A celebration with music, dance, free home-made cider wassail and soup followed by a ticket-only Ceilidh.
The event features a torch-lit procession through the village, much fun and merriment with Domesday Morris and their guests - including the brilliant Penkhull Brass, the wondrous Penkhull Mystery Singers and our fantastic residents of Penkhull... oh, and an apple tree or two!
So what is wassailing? The word Wassail comes from the Anglo-Saxon toast [Wæs þu hæl] meaning "be thou hale" or "be in good health" and links back to ancient celebrations pre-dating the Conquest of 1066. The local lord would give food and drink to villagers in exchange for their blessing and goodwill and receiving entertainment in form of song and dance. Cider was important in times past and wassailing also refers to drinking and singing the health of fruit trees. By awakening the cider apple trees and scaring away evil spirits, our forebears hoped their orchards would thrive and produce a bumper harvest in the autumn.
Listen to our Wassail interviews with Den Siegertsz on BBC Radio Stoke:
Here's our Wassail session on Genevieve Tudor's Sunday Folk:
For more details, contact domesdaymorris@hotmail.co.uk or phone the Squire, Bruce Jarvest on 07828 936110.