York Spring Fair & Food Festival opens at York Racecourse for Bank Holiday and half-term funfair rides, games and 40 stalls

Town Crier Ben Fry, the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of York, Councillor Chris and Joy Cullen, and York Central MP Rachael Maskell at today’s opening ceremony. Picture: Lisa Stonehouse

YORK Spring Fair & Food Festival opened this morning in the Clocktower Enclosure at York Racecourse, Knavesmire, York.

The ribbon was cut by the new Lord Mayor of York, Councillor Chris Cullwick, his first of no doubt many event-opening ceremonies since taking up his office yesterday.

Town Crier Ben Fry heralded the occasion and York Central MP Rachael Maskell was in attendance too to mark English Tourism Week.

Running over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend and through the half-term break to June 6, York Spring Fair & Food Festival is the first major outdoor event to be held in York since the easing of Covid restrictions under Step 3 on May 17.

It represents the first outing this year for York funfair operators Coopers Marquees and for many of the food and drink traders.

The event is one of the largest vintage funfairs to be mounted in the north of England for many years, comprising nine adult rides (although many are suitable for all ages),four children-specific rides and five game stalls with prizes every time.

The traction engine and Gavioli organ have not been out for almost two years, unable to turn out at any events last year, and ordinarily they would have attended fairs during the spring but have had many cancellations once more. 

The traction engine was driven in under steam to open the event, with a competition winner, Connor Witty, and his grandfather, Roy Barber, aboard after the family had to shield during the pandemic.

Competition winner Connor Witty and grandfather Ray Barber on the traction engine at the inaugural York Spring Fair & Food Festival at York Racecourse. Picture: Lisa Stonehouse

For vintage funfair enthusiasts, several unique or rare restored rides are on site:

* The 1936 ‘Ark’ Speedway, one of only four working models in Britain;

* Hush Hush, the Monorail train, the oldest ride dating from 1933 and the largest of its kind, featuring 11 local stations on the old LNER line;

* The 1947 Muffin The Mule Autodrome, the last remaining ride of its ilk, still with its original Edwin Hall artwork;

* The 1937 Brooklands Dodgems, one of a very small number of speedway tracks themed on the famous Brooklands motor-racing circuit, featuring rare original artwork.

York Spring Fair & Food Festival has employed many people, their first job in the events industry for many months, and at long last it represents an opportunity to interact with the public.

This outdoor fair and festival is a Covid-compliant event for all ages, where the organisers are following all prevailing Government guidance on Covid-19: signage to remind visitors of one-metre social distancing; hand sanitisers at the entrance and funfair rides and stalls; regular cleaning of rides, stalls and picnic tables and visitors being advised to wear face coverings on funfair rides.

Two family-owned York companies, Cooper Marquees and Jamboree Entertainment, have joined forces to create this event, combining the vintage funfair and a food festival showcasing 40 artisan food and drink producers’ stalls from Yorkshire and beyond.

Connor Witty on a funfair ride at the York Spring Fair & Food Festival. Picture: Lisa Stonehouse

Co-producer Johnny Cooper, chief executive officer of Coopers Marquees, says: “It’s exciting to be able to put together a vintage funfair on a scale that hasn’t been seen in York for decades. 

“The rides are visually stunning with artwork going back almost 90 years.  There will be rides and game stalls for all ages, so it’s a great opportunity to get out and have fun in a Covid 19-compliant environment.”

Fellow co-producer James Cundall, CEO of Jamboree Entertainment, says: “As we emerge from the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 lockdown, we are thrilled to be staging one of the first events in Yorkshire that will place the very best Yorkshire products before an audience hungry for an exciting day out.”

Coopers Marquees was established in the 1990s and is now Britain’s tenth-largest marquee company, supplying structures to  events large and small, such as food festivals.

Jamboree Entertainment brings 25 years of experience in producing live entertainment worldwide, and closer to home runs the Winter Wonderland ice rink and funfair, the upcoming season of Sounds In The Grounds concerts and the Great Ryedale Maze at Sherburn. 

The York Spring Fair & Food Festival is open daily from 10am to 6pm; admission is £3 for adults; children aged 12 and under, free. This excludes rides and game stalls, priced at £3 per person. 

From each admission charge, £1 will be donated to the New Building Fund of Ryedale Special Families, a charity that supports families with disabled children and young people.

Tickets are on sale at: ticketsource.co.uk/yorkspringfair. Booking in advance is recommended as numbers will be restricted under the Covid regulations. If unsold, tickets can be bought at the gate.

Beer, bratwurst, Bavarian dress code, brass band and funfairs bound for Yorktoberfest

BEER, bratwurst and all things Bavarian are on course for York Racecourse this autumn at the debut Yorktoberfest.

Mounted by James Cundall’s Jamboree Entertainment and Johnny Cooper’s Coopers Marquees, the October 28 to 31 event will follow the traditions of the first Oktoberfest, staged in Munich in 1810, where citizens were encouraged to eat, drink and be merry at the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and his princess bride.  

So much fun was had that an annual tradition was born…and now residents of York and beyond will be invited to “eat, drink and be merry-go-round” at the Clocktower Enclosure on Knavesmire, where a giant Bavarian-styled beer tent and traditional funfair will set a festive scene.

Inside the marquee, authentic German beer and a range of German-inspired food will be served at an array of tables and benches, while York’s own Oompah Brass Band will add to the hearty fun with their “thigh-slapping, foot-stomping, feel-good music”.  

Dancing is encouraged, as it has been at such gatherings for more than 200 years, as is the wearing of Lederhosen [traditional Bavarian men’s short trousers], Dirndls [Bavarian women’s rural domestic clothing, made from grey or coloured linen, sometimes with leather bodice and trim] or any other fancy dress, with nightly competitions and prizes for the best dressed.

Prost! Friends drinking together Bavarian beer in national costume or Dirndl at Oktoberfest. Likewise, fancy dressing German-style will be encouraged at Yorktoberfest

The Bavarian Bar also will serve wines, prosecco, spirits and soft drinks for those who prefer not to ‘hop’. A variety of food stalls will provide such essential favourites as sausages, schnitzels and pretzels, as well as vegan and vegetarian options.

Funfairs are integral to German Oktoberfests, and so Yorktoberfest will have its own traditional funfair, with Dodgems, Twister, Speedway and Chair-o-Plane delivering thrills

Yorktoberfest will have a limited capacity, with specific opening times: October 28 and 29,  7pm to 11pm; two sittings on October 30, 1pm to 5pm and 7pm to 11pm, and one sitting on October 31, 1pm to 5pm.

Tickets for Yorktoberfest are newly on sale at ticketsource.co.uk/yorktoberfest, priced at £15 per person for unreserved seating; £90 for a reserved table of six, and £135 for a VIP table of six, situated closest to the stage and with table service. An Early Beer(d) offer of £5 off per person is available on all ticket categories until July 31. Tickets will be on sale at the entrance too, subject to availability.

Yorktoberfest is produced by CMJ Events, a joint venture between the two York family-owned companies of Jamboree Entertainment and Coopers Marquees. CMJ Events will be bringing the York Spring Fair & Food Festival to the Clocktower Enclosure at York Racecourse from May 28 to June 6, as well as Sounds In The Grounds concerts by Beyond The Barricade, Abba Mania and A Country Night In Nashville from June 25 to 27, again at the Clocktower Enclosure.  

Super troupers: Abba Mania will play at the Sounds In The Grounds concert at York Racecourse on June 26

Welburn producer James Cundall’s Jamboree Entertainment team brings 25 years of experience in producing live entertainment worldwide, and closer to home produces Yorkshire’s Winter Wonderland ice rink and funfair, Sounds In The Grounds concerts at five venues around England and The Great Ryedale Maze at Sherburn.

Cundall also presented Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre on the Castle car park pop-up Elizabethan theatre site in York in 2018 and 2019.

Coopers Marquees was established in the 1990s and is now the tenth largest marquee company in Great Britain, supplying a range of structures to events large and small.

Co-producer Cundall, chief executive of Jamboree Entertainment says: “We’re determined to bring events to York that people can enjoy after the long months of Covid restrictions. Yorktoberfest promises to be an evening of jollity, with beer, bands, and bratwurst. Dust off the fancy-dress outfits and come along!”

Co-producer  Cooper, CEO of Coopers Marquees, says: “We’re looking forward to seeing one of our biggest marquees, at 160m long, installed on Knavesmire and themed with all things Bavarian, including a stage, bespoke thatched wooden barns, flags galore and generally everything needed for a great night out.”

Yorktoberfest will conform to all prevailing Government guidelines regarding Covid-19.


Hush, hush, here comes the York Spring Fair & Food Festival at York Racecourse in June

A 1933 Hush Hush train

TWO York companies are joining forces to hold the inaugural York Spring Fair & Food Festival in the Clocktower Enclosure at York Racecourse from May 28 to June 6.

James Cundall’s company, Jamboree Entertainment, and Johnny Cooper, of Coopers Marquees, are bringing together one of the largest vintage funfairs seen in North Yorkshire for many years and a food festival that will showcase the “very best artisan products from Yorkshire and beyond”.

Running over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend and through school half-term week, the event will conform to all prevailing Government guidelines regarding Covid-19.

The Vintage Funfair comprises a collection of restored vintage rides from the golden era of fairgrounds. Among them are an exhilarating 1936 Speedway; a rare Brooklands Dodgems from 1937 and a 1930s’ Chair-o-Plane, as well as a beautiful Carousel, Twister, Lighthouse Helter-Skelter, Octopus and Big Wheel. 

Three children’s rides will include the oldest ride, Hush Hush, the Monorail train, dating from 1933, as well as five game stalls offering prizes every time.

Co-producer James Cundall, chief executive officer of Jamboree Entertainment, says:  “It’s exciting to be able to put together a vintage funfair on a scale that hasn’t been seen in York for decades.  

“The rides are visually stunning with artwork going back almost 90 years.  There will be rides and game stalls for all ages, so it’s a great opportunity to get out and have fun in a Covid 19-compliant environment.”

The Food Festival will showcase approximately 40 artisan food and drink producer stalls and will be one of the first times that the public can interact with local food and drink suppliers.

Co-producer Johnny Cooper, CEO of Coopers Marquees, says: “As we emerge from the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 lockdown, we are thrilled to be staging one of the first events in Yorkshire that will place the very best Yorkshire products before an audience hungry for an exciting day out.”

Both Jamboree Entertainment and Coopers Marquees are York-based, family-owned companies. The team at Jamboree Entertainment brings 25 years of experience in producing live entertainment worldwide and, closer to home, produces the award-winning Yorkshire’s Winter Wonderland ice rink and funfair, Sounds In The Grounds concerts and the Great Ryedale Maze at Sherburn.  

Coopers Marquees was established in the 1990s and is now the tenth largest marquee company in the UK, supplying a range of structures to events large and small, including numerous food festivals.

The York Spring Fair & Food Festival will be open daily from 10am to 6pm. Admission will be £3 for adults; children aged 12 and under, free. This excludes rides and game stalls, which will cost £3 per person.  £1 of the admission fee will be donated to Ryedale Special Families, a charity that supports families with disabled children and young people, for their New Building Fund. 

Tickets will go on sale on Tuesday, March 30 at ticketsource.co.uk/yorkspringfair.  Booking in advance is recommended as numbers will be restricted under Covid regulations.  If unsold, tickets can be bought at the gate.

Further information can be found at yorkspringfair.co.uk; food or drink suppliers interested in taking a pitch at the event should email admin@yorkspringfair.co.uk.

Jamboree Entertainment will present three Sounds In The Grounds concerts in the Clocktower Enclosure this summer: Beyond The Barricade on June 25; Abba Mania, June 26, and A Country Night In Nashville, June 27.

Sounds In The Grounds summer concerts confirmed for York Racecourse enclosure

Beyond The Barricade: Les Miserables et al at the Clocktower Enclosure at York Racecourse on June 25

AFTER making its socially distanced debut in North Yorkshire last summer, impresario James Cundall’s Sounds In The Grounds is adding a new location to its picnic-concert portfolio for Summer 2021.

Complying with Covid-19 guidelines, the Clocktower Enclosure of York Racecourse will play host to Beyond The Barricade on June 25, Abba Mania on June 26 and A Country Night In Nashville on June 27.

Welburn producer Cundall says: “Audiences can come together and enjoy three evenings of best-loved and internationally renowned bands from their own designated picnic patch – for  two, four or six people – that will be socially distanced from others but close enough to share the fun.”

The capacity will be capped at 1,400 for the fully staged productions with LED screens on either side of the stage.

“We’re just trying to do some fun events for this summer, and we’re encouraging concert-goers to come in fancy-dress: will it be showbiz sparkle, platforms or cowboy boots?!” says Cundall, who is best known in York for two summers of Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre in a pop-up Elizabethan theatre on the Castle car park in 2018 and 2019.

Beyond The Barricade, now in its 22nd year, features past principals from Boublil and Schonberg’s Les Misérables in the West End and on UK tours performing much-loved songs from the greatest musicals, among them The Phantom Of The Opera, The Lion King, Evita, Miss Saigon, Chicago, Hamilton and Jesus Christ Superstar, topped off by a spectacular finale from Les Misérables.

From London’s West End to Las Vegas, Abba Mania is billed as the world’s number one touring tribute to the ubiquitous super-Swedes, playing more than 30 countries over the past two decades, delighting millions with platforms, flares and all the hits.

A Country Night In Nashville re-creates the energy and atmosphere of a buzzing Honky Tonk in downtown Nashville in a celebration of country music built around songs from its biggest stars both past and present.

Abba Mania: York Racecourse will be the platform for platforms on June 26

Returning by popular demand, York’s very own party starters, the New York Brass Band– a Glastonbury favourite too, by the way – will be the support act to each concert, performing a different repertoire every night, from jazz to Eighties’ pop to current hits.

Cundall has booked them for no fewer than 17 engagements this summer when his picnic-concert programme will return to 2020’s debut double act of Scampston Hall, near Malton, from June 11 to 13 and Ripley Castle, near Harrogate, from August 20 to 22.

In the new line-up of popular acts for these North Yorkshire country-estate venues will be The Definitive Rat Pack, One Night Of Tina and Killer Queen.

The Definitive Rat Pack presents an uncannily accurate recreation of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr in an evening of swing; Tina Turner’s greatest hits are rolled out in a rock’n’rollercoaster ride through four decades, and Killer Queen recall the iconic songs and showmanship of Queen’s shows in the late Freddie Mercury’s 1980s’ pomp.

Sounds In The Grounds concerts are designed to comply with all official guidance on Covid-19, ensuring audiences can enjoy live music outdoors in a safe and responsible way.

The picnic patches will be defined by painted lines in the grass arena within the grounds, with views of the racecourse and grandstands or stately home. They will be set out in alternating rows, with patches for two people, followed by a row of patches for four people, then for six people. The patches have been designed to be one metre apart within each row, with two-metre aisles between the rows.

Looking back on last year’s launch, Cundall says: “What happened was that Sounds In The Grounds came about because we were sitting in the garden, looking out, thinking, ‘surely there must be something we can do to get artists back to work?’.

“We thought, ‘what if we put people in ‘boxes’ for concerts in the open air, with patches of two, four and six?’.

A Country Night In Nashville: Presenting a country night in York on June 27

“After the shows, people came up and said, ‘that’s amazing, not just for Covid-safe conditions but for the future’. The advantage of this [configuration] is that you can book a patch like you book a theatre ticket: you have a guaranteed place.

“Everyone asked us to continue the concept, which we’ve done, and vaccine or no vaccine, the message is that in our 40s upwards, we’re not going to want to be really close up to other people at concerts.

“Our picnic patch concept enables patrons to pre-book their own designated space, thereby eliminating that mad scramble for the best site, which often mars an outdoor concert. Our audiences can turn up when it suits them and know they will have a safe and fun evening.”

Cundall already had settled on returns to Scampston Hall and Ripley Castle for “fun concerts by bands that play music you know, performed by musicians who’ve worked in shows you know in the West End”.

“Then, late in the day, we thought, ‘why don’t we do something at York Racecourse, where we could get 1,400 people in the Clocktower Enclosure?’,” he recalls.

“We’re thrilled to be adding York Racecourse to our list of prestigious venues!  These picnic concerts are a great opportunity to get together and enjoy a fun night of live music in a safe, socially distanced way. From the glorious Broadway classics to Dancing Queen and Dolly Parton, I hope we have something for everyone.”

He is delighted to have signed up the New York Brass Band too. “Without doubt, they are one of York’s best exports and it will be wonderful to get them on stage in their home city,” he says.

“Importantly, it’s an opportunity for both musicians and crew to showcase their talent again after months of inactivity during these difficult times.”

Artist’s impression of the Great Yorkshire Pantomime tented palace for Aladdin that may (or may not) be staged at York Racecourse in the winter

Cundall recalls the finale to last September’s last Sounds In The Grounds concert. “There was a feeling of ‘when will we see each other again’, so what’s key for us with the new season of shows is we’re trying to re-connect artists and audiences.”

York Racecourse may play host to another James Cundall entertainment enterprise in the winter ahead: the Great Yorkshire Pantomime production of Aladdin in a big top.

Produced by Cundall and directed by Chris Moreno, writer-director of the Three Bears Productions pantos at the Grand Opera House in York, the “tentomime” was first mooted for last Christmas, then confirmed for an Easter run from today (19/3/2021) to April 11 before killjoy Covid forced a postponement decision on January 18.

Billed as “a dream come true”, Aladdin would have played in a luxurious heated tented palace to an audience capacity of 976 in tiered, cushioned seating.

The 36 performances would have been socially distanced and compliant with Covid-19 guidance, presented by a cast of 21, including nine principals, and a band on a 50-metre stage with a Far East palace façade, projected scenery and magical special effects.

Will the show go ahead this Christmas? “We’re waiting to see what the Government will do on Covid measures before deciding on what we’ll do with the pantomime,” says Cundall. Watch this space.

Tickets for all Sounds In The Grounds concerts are on sale at soundsinthegrounds.seetickets.com with prices starting at £59 (plus booking fees) for a standard picnic patch for two people. All Covid-19 guidance from the Government is continuously monitored and followed.

Concert times at Clocktower Enclosure, York Racecourse:

June 25

Gates open at 4.30pm; New York Brass Band, 6pm; Beyond The Barricade, 7.30pm, concert finishes at 10pm.

June 26

Gates open at 4.30pm; New York Brass Band, 6pm; Abba Mania, 7.30pm; finale, 10pm.

June 27

Gates open at 3.30pm; New York Brass Band, 5pm; A Country Night In Nashville, 6.30pm; finale, 9pm.