Wretton All Eras fair

The Wretton Historical Organisation offer unstinted praise to the organisr=ers of The All Eras fair

Sunday 18th May 2008 - What a day! The project, two years in the making, took lots of effort from lots of local people. From the mammoth task of completing the grant form, to resubmitting the grant form, to resubmitting the resubmitted form, it took a bucket load of

determination to sort things out.

The process started about two years ago, when Jackie Pardoe first generated the idea for an event to bring the local community together. Having finally been granted the award, the fun part began - sourcing the reinactors! I remember a cold and very windy October evening when Jackie and I went out in search of our first booking. Down a single track lane, near to Oxborough, we drove up to an old farmhouse with a solitary light in the window. John Lord, a local expert on the Stone Age, invited us in out of the cold for a cup of coffee and a chat. We explained the idea to him and invited him to be part of it. He, unfortunately, was unable to attend but assured us that his son would be able to. A few hours later, Jackie and I braved the cold again, feeeling very smug about our first booking, finally feeling that the

All eras Fair was a real possibility.

Along side the process of finding exhibitors came the task of organising the event. In addition to Jackie and myself, Jane Scarrott, Heather Smith and Helaine Wyett joined together for numerous meetings to battle out over the final arrangements. Since the formation of WHO, lots of local people have offered their support. A fact that we are most thankful for!

The day finally arrived (after days of terrible rain), and the sun shone! After all of the arranging, the day seemed to slot into place! My enviable task was the selling of the lots. In a meeting about a year ago, it seeemed a great idea for us all to wear historical

costumes - on the day it seemed less appealing! Having donned my early Georgian garb and my most fetching white wig (no laughing please!) I set out to sell the tickets. The rest of the day is really a blur. I would just like to say a huge thank you to all of those people who I

tackled to buy a ticket. The money for the church was most gratefully recieved!

Seeing everyone together on the village green; talking and laughing was fantastic! I spoke to lots of people who I had never met before who had lived in the village for years. This was the reason for the event and I feel that it was a great success! Hopefully, with the support of everyone in the local area, WHO will be putting on more events in the future for us all to enjoy.

Now, a final word to anyone who is thinking about putting on an event. GO FOR IT! It does take hard work and determination, but our villages are worth it!

So WHO offers many thanks to everyone who attended the Wretton All Eras History Fair!