Midsummer Fair 2025 gets under way in Cambridge - but has tradition been undermined this year?

Midsummer Fair is under way in Cambridge - but there has been criticism that the traditional proclamation marking its opening has been moved.

The fair, now in its 812th year, runs from Wednesday (18 June) until Sunday (22 June), with fairground rides, a market and food and drink on Midsummer Common.

It is traditionally opened on the third Wednesday of June by the mayor of Cambridge with a procession and proclamation before pennies are given out to children.

That, however, has been moved from Wednesday to Thursday this year.

Cllr Robert Dryden (Lab, Cherry Hinton) said this showed “blatant disregard for history and public sentiment”.

He said: “This quiet shift, likely administrative in appearance, nonetheless carries public consequence. The proclamation is not a matter of convenience - it is a matter of tradition, identity, and continuity. Decisions that reposition it, particularly without public transparency or community input, risk setting a precedent where civic ceremony is subordinate to institutional diary management.

“At a time when communities are looking for anchors in tradition, it is all the more regrettable that the integrity of such a symbolic event can be compromised so lightly.

“Once again, a fundamental pillar of Cambridge’s heritage is being undermined.”

A Cambridge City Council spokesperson responded: “The timing of the Midsummer Fair proclamation has changed several times over the many centuries of the fair’s existence, and in fact it was only relatively recently that it switched from 2.30pm in the afternoon to 5.30pm in the early evening.

“This year it has been decided that a fresh new approach will be taken, to reinvigorate the tradition and to make it more inclusive and enjoyable for all, with added involvement from young people. The proclamation is being arranged in partnership with the Cambridge Rutherford Rotary Club to coincide with their annual ‘Kids Out at the Fair’ session on Thursday morning for around 60 local schoolchildren with special education needs and/or disabilities.

“On Thursday morning, a party including the mayor of Cambridge, Cllr Dinah Pounds, will form a procession to the fair from Wesley Church at 11am, ahead of the proclamation at 11.15am beside the helter-skelter and the traditional distribution of coins to the children present. We hope that everyone attending the proclamation and the fair has a very enjoyable time.”

But Cllr Dryden was unconvinced.

“Such a decision sets a concerning precedent. It disregards statutory timing upheld for generations, ignores the weight of public trust in historical celebrations, and weakens the very fabric of Cambridge’s cultural heritage,” he said.

“With the Folk Festival already in jeopardy - unlikely to return in its full form by 2026 - this latest move signals yet another example of the council’s indifference toward traditions that define the city.”

The fair runs from 5pm on weekdays and from 12pm on Saturday and Sunday.