Bored of doing the same old, same old every weekend? We compile Britain's strangest events and quirky traditions so you can always find something fun, unforgettable and downright strange to do. Browse our collection of eccentric UK customs, hidden rituals, obscure festivals and odd challenges and competitions, and get out there and go somewhere weird...
May
What do you know about seaweed? Find out everything you'll ever need or want to know at the Clovelly Seaweed Festival, including trying seaweed dishes and products. Find out more.
The logical conclusion to man's quest for cheese. Fling yourself down hill after a wheel of cheese to win glory and, well, a wheel of cheese. You must be 18+ to take part, with the first event taking place at 12:00. Find out more.
Books glorious books. Taking place in the UK's premier book town, this literature festival was described by Bill Clinton as 'The Woodstock of the mind'. Find out more.
This unique tradition involves four days of processions, culminating in the villagers 'shooting' the earl on the beach. Find out more.
Over 650 performers will be at this festival showcasing everything Folk, from music and Morris and traditional dancing, to storytellers and traders. Find out more.
Does running up a steep hill carrying a 60lb sack of wool sound like your kind of challenge? Taking place in the centre of town, there are several races you can get involved in. Find out more.
These ancient games feature the most prestigious event in the Shin Kicking calendar, Tug O' War, Running Races, Champion and Championship of the Hill competitions, alongside music and food. Find out more.
A weekend of Morris dancing, processions and a display of the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance from this well established Morris troupe. Find out more.
June
Oxford's tortoises battle it out for supremacy in this hotly anticipated race. Come along to cheer the tortoises on (pace yourself though, as you might be cheering for a while). Find out more.
Gather in a castle woodland to celebrate in ritual, weave magic, honour the sacred and keep the old ways alive with speakers, music, tarot, drumming, healing, workshops, a magical market and more. Find out more.
With the biggest prize fund in mini golf, this is a must-attend for putting-green pros. Competitors from across the UK and Europe attend to duke it out in Main, Novice, Team and Junior events. Find out more.
Perhaps the only event out there where your ability to roll a pie is rewarded. Each year fig pies are baked to a special recipe and rolled down the street to see who can get theirs the furthest. Take part in this ancient competition and get your hands on the unique pie recipe! Find out more.
Sign the waiver and wage war with custard pies as teams compete for their place in the world rankings. Find out more.
One of the oldest Border festivals, common riding involves riding the town's boundaries on horseback. This is a popular event that kicks off at 4am! Find out more.
A celebration of folk music and canal boat culture. Expect live music, food, vendors, dances and exhibitions. Find out more.
Can a human outrun a horse? This extreme challenge is a one-of-a-kind challenge for those looking to find out what's possible. Find out more.
A gruelling 2.4-mile race where teams hurtle round the course with decorated beds. Find out more.
Ever wanted to fly? Build your contraption and find out at this Birdman event. Find out more.
This ten-day festival is dedicated to Cornish culture and folklore. with parades, performances, arts and culture. Find out more.
One of the principal events in the Druidic calendar. Famous all over the world, experience the solstice at Stonehenge for an ambience you'll find nowhere else. Find out more.
This former open-cast coal mine has been transformed into a sprawling artland. On the solstice, they're running a programme of events and celebrations. Find out more.
How do you charm a worm? Find out or show the world how it's done at the World Worm Charming Championship. There's even an opportunity to beat the Guinness World Record! Find out more.
One of the last mock-mayor elections in England, candidates from the local Morris troupe are elected with the polling station handily located in the Brewery Tap. This tradition dates from the 18th century and features dancing and lots of fun. Find out more.
Legend has it, pixies used to inhabit Ottery St Mary before they were frightened away by people. This day is all about redressing the balance, with a reenactment of the legend and a fete with stalls, food and drink. Find out more.
Did you know Milton Keynes was designed by hippies? Midsummer Boulevard was built to be aligned with the path of the sun at the summer solstice. The Midsummer Festival celebrates the solstice with all sorts of events during the day. Find out more.
The premise is simple. Run 2/3rds of a mile in fancy dress while pushing a pram and down a drink in seven 'refreshment stops' on the way, with all money raised going to charity. Find out more.
This festival features live music and events dedicated to learning the old ways through workshops, rituals and feasting. There's even the opportunity to take part in a fire walk. Find out more.
Forget egg shortages, take part in a whole day's worth of egg-throwing events at Swaton Vintage Day. Find out more.
Sheep shows, displays, racing. In short, everything sheep-related in this event celebrating the town's heritage. Find out more.
July
Sun's out, and so is everything else. Join this naked bike ride through Brighton to celebrate bikes, body power and low-impact living while protesting against fossil fuels and car culture. Find out more.
This boundary marking ceremony has been taking place for 600 years. More than 100 horse riders take part in this spectacle that attracts thousands. Find out more.
A festival of street performance and outdoor arts that includes a lineup too varied to even attempt to include here, and it's completely free to attend. Find out more.
Teams of two in fancy dress carry 15/20kg straw bales 2.5 miles, drinking a pint in five pubs along the route. At least you're carrying a semi-comfortable seat with you... Find out more.
An alternative vision of the past in a town dedicated to our version of the past...This steampunk weekend melds sci-fi with Victoriana for a great event underpinned by even better costumes. Find out more.
The UK's biggest naturist festival. Expect music (including the Wurzels), comedy, sports, talks and many other events celebrating body positivity and freedom. Find out more.
Peashooting is serious business at the world championship, with pea spot-checks conducted throughout by the judges. This is your opportunity to put all your learning from The Beano to use. Find out more.
This wheelbarrow race involves fancy dress, getting soaking wet in the ford and the obligatory downing of half pints. Find out more.
Featuring moderately terrifying crow costumes, the fair centres around a dance that's unique to the event. It originated during the great depression to raise money for those who were out of work. Find out more.
The largest free medieval gathering in Europe, the festival involves reenactments, traders and period entertainment. The main event is the reenactment of the Battle of Tewkesbury, but there's so much more to discover, including an ale specially brewed for the occasion. Find out more.
The biggest pedal car race of the year takes place around the streets of Ringwood. Join in or watch this human-powered display of speed. Find out more.
If you're a hedgehog lover, don't worry! This event doesn't involve actual hedgehogs, just decorated fir cones that are brushed along the course. The event is claimed to derive from the village keeping hedgehogs as pest-controlling pets. It's also said to have inspired the hedgehog and flamingo croquet game in Alice in Wonderland. We're all mad here... Find out more.
Liquorice might be divisive, but if you like it, you'll want to attend this festival celebrating the history of the heart of the UK's liquorice industry, with food and drinks on offer ranging from liquorice gin to jam. Find out more.
Fools Delight combines five-star dining with world-class circus performances for what may be the greatest dinner and a show out there. Where else can you find a Wheel of Death and pithivier under one roof? Find out more.
A festival dedicated to all things fantasy with live music and the UK's largest fantasy market. Find out more.
Slow speeds, high stakes. Start training your snails now to compete in the most important event in the snail racing calendar. Find out more.
The revival of this ancient celebration starts with a parade and includes a Green Man play with plenty of music, dancing, stalls and entertainment. Find out more.
The poor ale tasters and bread weighers of Ashburton's Leet Court have to test the ale and bread from all the town's alehouses and bakeries - what a chore! This 14th-century tradition is a lot of fun and ends with an auction of the weighed loaves, with bakers making special creations for the occasion. Find out more.
The type of pettiness we can get behind. This tradition to elect a mock mayor originated to poke fun at the fancy New Woodstock. Expect fun, fancy dress and outrageous speeches. Find out more.
The Soho Village Fete packs a huge amount into a single day. There are six hours of live entertainment, a bar provided by the iconic French House, snail racing, the Human Fruit Machine, a tug of war between Soho police and fire, as well as the iconic waiter race. Find out more.
This tradition has been happening since the 13th century and began with the wealthy residents throwing hot coins to the peasants who would burn their fingers picking them up - what fun! Now, warm, rather than hot, coins are thrown from a balcony to the town's children below. Find out more.
The oldest footrace in Britain that was first run in 1508. The winner of this 3-mile race was traditionally awarded a pair of red socks. Find out more.
August
Stealing from the rich to give to the poor, has there ever been a better time to celebrate this principle? The Robin Hood Festival takes place in Sherwood Forest, with jousting displays, medieval re-enactments and all sorts of weird and wonderful events. Find out more.
Europe's largest 13th-century battle re-enactment. As well as the re-enactment, there's a festival, market, demonstrations of weaponry, cooking and medicine and a medieval banquet. Find out more.
Black Shuck is a Suffolk folk icon. This festival involves all sorts of events and folk arts dedicated to Black Shuck, with the customary burning of an effigy of the shaggy black dog. Find out more.
For 70 years, this festival has been showcasing a huge range of Folk entertainment, with over 700 events. Find out more.
Hens might not seem like the most graceful creatures, but they can race...apparently. Join the hen races and enjoy BBQ food, beer and ska punk music. Find out more.
An immersive medieval festival featuring music, jousting, feasts, knights, crafts and quests. What more could you ask for? Find out more.
The oldest gooseberry festival in the world! The aim is to find the heaviest gooseberry, with categories for red, yellow, green and white gooseberries, with competitors from all over the country taking part. Find out more.
Special chariots have been created for this event, all you need to do is pull them. Teams of two race against other teams to pull their chariot around a specially created course. Find out more.
For a week, the village of Kettlewell is overtaken by scarecrows with events throughout the week to raise money for the local community. Find out more.
No sniggering. A Dorset knob is a hard biscuit that makes an ideal missile in this competition. Get yourself bragging rights as a champion knob thrower and try this unique delicacy. Find out more.
Six pyrotechnic companies compete to be crowned the British Fireworks Champions. This is definitely going to go some way beyond your local rugby club display. Find out more.
Imber village was evacuated during WW2 and never returned to those living there. It's only open to visit a few days a year. On Imberbus day, you can travel by vintage Routemaster bus to this mysterious village. Find out more.
You might be fast, but are you faster than a train? Find out with this event where you race a steam train through the picturesque Welsh countryside. You can enter races ranging from 3.5 to 14 miles. Find out more.
Didn't know lawn mower racing was a thing? Well buckle in for this 12-hour race. Teams of 3 will race mowers from 19:00 to 07:00, whatever the weather and with no lighting. Absolute insanity that racing legends have competed in, including Stirling Moss and Derek Bell. Find out more.
This is a unique event where boys compete to plough the straightest furrow on a beach using miniature ploughs. There's also a competition for the best working horse costume, with costumes handed down for generations. Find out more.
One of the UK's premier folk festivals, including folk and world music and folk dancing and events. Find out more.
Visit the mysterious Imber Village. Evacuated during WW2 and never returned to the inhabitants, this is one of the few opportunities to go. Find out more.
A 'funeral' for the mackerel held at the end of the fishing season. There will be plenty of food, drink and a procession and ceremonial burning of an enormous papier mache mackerel. Find out more.
A festival of contemporary and experimental folk, along with Morris dancing, mummers' plays and folk sessions. Find out more.
Warm up for the World Bog Snorkelling Championship on the 24th with this bog-themed triathlon featuring a 60-yard bog swim, 2-mile cycle and 1-mile run through boggy fields. Find out more.
Plums take over the town for the bank holiday weekend. With events including a bike night, horse racing and a steam train, as well as cookery and gardening events centred around plums, this is the greatest ode to plums you're likely to find. Find out more.
The most prestigious bog snorkelling event of the year. Kicking off at 10am at the Waen Rhydd bog, don't forget to pack your snorkel and flippers. Find out more.
Love gravy? Can't get enough of wrestling? Then this is the event for you. Contestants wrestle for 2 minutes in Lancashire gravy to compete for the title of champion, and it's all for a good cause. Find out more.
Every year the Bourton Rovers take the game from the pitch to a river, playing a thirty minute match in supremely impractical terrain in a tradition stretching back a century. Find out more.
Competitors can race around the moat of the Bishop's Palace in different categories, with fancy dress rewarded, as well as speed. Find out more.
Three weird events in one! The waiter's race involves running with a tray and glass, pouring the beer halfway and running back with the winner having the most beer remaining. The barrel roll pits teams against each other to roll their barrel through the town as quickly as possible. The trolley grand prix sees a driver and 'mechanic' working together to complete the route while ensuring a permanently leaking tank of water never empties. Find out more.
Toe wrestling may actually be an ancient pursuit, and this is your opportunity to take the crown in this toe-tally unique event. Find out more.
How much haggis can you eat? Find out if it's enough to win the haggis-eating world championship. It's free to enter and the fastest to finish theirs wins! Find out more.
Pack your comfiest saddle and extra suncream for the World Naked Bike Ride that's in aid of a safer cycling culture in Bristol. Find out more.
Largs Viking Festival commemorates the 1263 Battle of Largs, the last mainland battle between the Scots and the Norse. The event takes place in Largs Viking Village, which shows what life would have been like in a 13th-century Viking village. Find out more.
Cheese festival. Do we need to say any more? The cheese races involves teams carrying truckles of cheese on stretchers who compete for cash prizes. Find out more.
Kent it famous for its hop-picking heritage, and this festival celebrates the hop and its role in the beer-making process. There's music, dance and lots of events taking place during this weekend festival. Find out more.
Lobsters and crabs are a speciality of the North Devon coast. This event features seafood, music, entertainment and workshops, all in aid of the National Lobster Hatchery. Find out more.
September
The premier stone-skimming event. Skims are measured in distance travelled, with lots of categories to compete in. Plus, the location is unbeatable. Find out more.
The most famous of the Highland Games events, a gathering has happened in Braemer for around 900 years. Find out more.
This race started when the Nags Head Pub in Edale ran out of beer, and a team of drinkers ran to the Snake Pass Inn and returned with a keg. Now, teams of eight carry a barrel over four miles of hill, moor and trail. This race is no joke. Find out more.
Choose from a half marathon or 10k, don fancy dress and sample food and wines grown on the vineyard, with six 'refreshment' stops and up to five hours to complete the race. Find out more.
Potentially the oldest surviving folk tradition in England, follow the Horn Dancers on a 10-mile route around the surrounding area (and pubs). Find out more.
This is the oldest boat race in the world and possibly the oldest continuous race in any sport, taking place every year since 1715. Expect to see top-class rowing. Find out more.
Mad about these molluscs? Come down to the Rock Oyster Festival and take part in the oyster-eating competition. The fastest to eat half a dozen oysters and down half a pint of beer wins. The trick is keeping it all down... Find out more.
Bath is famous for its association with Jane Austen, and the Jane Austen Centre puts on the festival once a year. Expect lots of regency costumes, dances, workshops and Jane Austen-related events. Find out more.
Competitors must eat a single onion. Sounds easy? People have travelled from all over the world to try, and most have been humbled trying to beat the championship time. Find out more.
The world's fireworks elite compete to create the biggest decorative explosions in the sky. What better setting for this than Blackpool? Find out more.
Help settle the grudge between Yorkshire and Lancashire by knocking down as many Yorkshire Puddings as possible with black puddings. It's as crazy as it sounds. Find out more.
The premier festival celebrating everything to do with The King. Join in and crown the best Elvis of the festival. Find out more.
Size does matter at this giant vegetable competition. Ever seen a 20kg radish? Here's your chance to see a plethora of monstrous vegetables! Find out more.
Celebrating the freeman's 'right' to bring sheep to market over the Thames without paying a toll, this long-established event raises money for charity. Find out more.
October
Fancy you can make a good bowl of porridge? Put your skills to the test at this competition that draws competitors from all over the world. Find out more.
Apples, pears, cider and perry are the order of the day, and this event celebrates their production and the finished products - with plenty of opportunities to try some of the finest examples of each. Find out more.
The only chance you have to establish yourself as the definitive conker champion. Start practising your swing and dream of lifting the coveted trophy. Find out more.
The Whitchuch Blackberry Fair combines music and art, spanning the traditional and folk to the totally out-there, with markets, sustainability, fancy dress and a huge programme of entertaining events. Find out more.
The Celtic festival of Samhain is now known as Halloween. This is one of the best Samhain events around, in the weird and wonderful town of Glastonbury. Find out more.
This festival celebrates the passing of summer and the approach of the darker seasons. There will be Morris dancing, music and other folk and traditional displays. Find out more.
The Dark Folklore Festival features artists, storytellers, scholars and enthusiasts who celebrate the dark legends and heritage of Cornwall. The festival features opening and closing rituals, exclusive sessions with masters of folklore and dark literature, live music and droll telling, a folklore parade, and an artist marketplace. Find out more.
Punkie means lantern, and in this traditional event, mangelwurzels rather than pumpkins are carved into lanterns and paraded around the village. The supposed origin was when the men of the village went to a fair to get drunk, and the lanterns were created to guide them back to safety. Find out more.
This is Europe's largest Halloween festival. For four days, celebrations of all things spooky fill the streets of Derry. Find out more.
THE event for goths in the UK. With music, entertainment and shopping, join this unique event in the location that helped inspire Bram Stoker's Dracula. Find out more.
November
For reasons lost to history, the people of Ottery St Mary light tar barrels on fire and run through the town with them hoisted on their shoulders. A genuine spectacle and unique tradition. Find out more.
Beaujolais Nouveau has lost some of its appeal in recent years, but it's a big event in Swansea. Visit for the full experience of this interesting red wine celebration. Find out more.
Organised to coincide with the Mid-Wales Beer Festival, this walk was designed in response to the lack of pubs in the countryside around Llanwrtyd Wells. Take part in a 12 or 20-mile walk with specially created checkpoints serving free beer along the way. Find out more.
December
Pick up your Santa suit and run the 4.5km route in this interesting way to get into the Christmas spirit. Find out more.
the Krampus is said to accompany St Nicholas to deal with misbehaving children. This frankly terrifying parade needs to be seen to be believed, and is an effective way to guarantee good behaviour before Christmas. Find out more.
Mark the shortest day of the year at the Winter Solstice at Stonehenge. Less busy than the Summer Solstice, but still expect crowds (and pack a blanket). Find out more.
Visit the mysterious Imber Village. Evacuated during WW2 and never reopened, this is one of the few opportunities to go. Find out more.
Hurling fireballs around your head, what better way to welcome the New Year? Find out more.
Whisky barrels filled with hot, burning tar, what better way to welcome in the New Year? Find out more.