Today we’re taking a flight of fancy. Imagine….
Late one night, as you ponder plans for the season ahead, you Google “Christmas craft fair near me” and dozily cast your eyes over the search result. ‘Thames Frost Fair’ flashes up on your screen. Intrigued, you become more alert and continue reading:
Three to four days of fun and festivity on the frozen River Thames. Free entrance. Access anywhere between Blackfriars Bridge and London Bridge. Come and spend your pennies on the plentiful pedlars’ goods and browse through a wide variety of vendors’ stalls. Fill your bellies with hot mutton or fowl and treat yourselves with warm apples or gingerbread to finish. Wash your meal down with tea, coffee or if you fancy something stronger, you’ll find gin or ale flowing in abundance.
There is plenty to see, with all manner of shows and tricks. Hold your breath as you watch some bull baiting and keep an eye out for the elephant crossing the ice. Travel by foot, horse or Hackney carriage. You might even see a glimpse of King Charles II and his beautiful Queen Catherine. Hurry, don’t delay! The Frost Fair will only be here as long as the ice holds. Fully awake now, you look again and check your search words. “Christmas craft fair near me”.
This is definitely what you were looking for. Pinching yourself, you glance up at the window. The curtains are not yet drawn, and a silvery stream of light shines in from a full moon. The night is young. This sounds too good to miss. If you leave now, you could be there before long. Throwing on an extra jumper, you reach for your coat, hat and gloves and set out across town. London looks different. Less houses, different architecture and no cars. The smell of woodsmoke and other less pleasant odours seeps into your nostrils. The streets are quiet, other than some stray cats wailing and a noisy brawl erupting from a packed public house. It looks more like a tavern of old than the local where you meet your friends.
You continue walking towards London Bridge, and as the roads become busier, the light changes, and suddenly you are in full and glittering morning sunshine. You find yourself in the middle of a bustling and excited throng of Londoners, all heading towards the river. The chatter of children and the clamour of burly tradesmen compete with the clip-clop of hooves, the occasional swish of a whip and the whinny of a horse. The air is freezing; you’ve never felt this level of ice cold before.
Suddenly, as you turn a corner, a whole new and spectacular vista appears. The frozen River Thames has become a street. Tents which look somewhat similar to pop-up stalls line either side, horses and carriages run along the middle, and a multitude of pedlars pushing barrows filled with anything from pots and pans to herbal cures wander through the crowds. A group of bedraggled-looking boys in skimpy trousers and oversized coats are playing football, and some well to do looking girls with colourful woollen coats and fur muffs take turns to give each other sledge rides.
You make your way gingerly across the ice. Some people wearing ice skates are gliding with the elegance of swans as they swiftly speed across the frozen river. You see a stall selling ribbon. You like the look of it and, thinking that it would add a unique twist to your latest crafting project, you feel in your pocket and find a few coins, quite unlike the ones you are used to. You offer one up, and the sellers’ eyes gleam; he’s no doubt been paid a week’s earnings in one go.
Your stomach begins to rumble, and the delicious fragrance of freshly cooked pork entices you onwards. Soon, your eyes fall on a hog roast; a whole pig, apple in mouth, being roasted over a spit. You warm your hands by the welcome fire. Soon, it is ready to be eaten, and you join the jostling queue to pay for a portion. It is very flavourful and good to munch as you continue to watch the scenes around you.
You decide to seek out the elephant, though you hope to stay clear of the bull baiting. As you wander through the happy crowds, you come across a huge machine, making a rhythmic clicking noise. As you look further, you see it is a printing press! It is busily churning out poems to commemorate the Fair. You reach into your pocket again and exchange another coin for a poem on a sheet of rough paper. Fascinated, you begin reading it and become completely immersed. You don’t notice the thunderous noise of hooves and the collective yells of a mass of young men waving sticks. You come face-to-face with a large bull, red-eyed and slathering. You shut your eyes and feel yourself falling, falling, falling.
When you open your eyes, you find yourself in your familiar lounge, settled amidst the cushions in your favourite armchair. Your laptop has slid to the side, and the scented candle has almost burnt away. You blink. What a dream! It seemed so real. You get up to blow the candle out and make your way to bed. Time to plan for the weekend tomorrow. Before you switch off the light, you reach into your coat pocket for the house keys. There, underneath keys, gloves and an old receipt, you feel a scroll of paper. Curious, you pull it out. It is a poem commemorating one of the great Frost Fairs tied with a piece of blue ribbon.
Well, we may not believe in time travel, but the Frost Fairs of London certainly existed long before we could Google “Christmas craft fairs near me”. From the late seventh century through to the early nineteenth century, when the Thames froze over, the resilient Londoners would head to the river and make the most of the opportunity to buy and sell and have some fun. Try googling them to find out more!
And if you are planning to take your craft to a modern-day fair or organised event, don’t forget to cover yourself with single-day public liability insurance. Just drop us a call at Craft Insurance, and we’ll help you with the cover that your craft business needs.
