Hull Fair

Hull Fair is one of Europe's largest travelling funfairs, which comes to Hull, England for one week, from 16:00 on Friday to midnight of the Saturday eight days later, encompassing 11 October each year. The fair is open every day between these days except Sunday. Unlike small local fairs, Hull Fair attracts rides, attractions and travellers from a wide variety of different regions from around the country.

The fair is one of Hull's biggest traditions, as well as one of its oldest, having reached its 700th anniversary in 1993. Carrying on with such tradition, the fair is opened by the Lord Mayor of Hull on the opening evening, normally at 5 pm. It first opened from 9 to 23 March 1278.

Local tradition states that the changing of the calendar in 1751 led the locals to believe the loss of eleven days affected their fair. “Give us back our eleven days,” was the cry as an enraged mob charged around the streets of Hull, calling for the return of their eleven-day festivities which they believed to have been lost due to the calendar change. The outraged masses got their wish and from that year onwards 11 October, or the Friday nearest to it, became the official date for Hull Fair.