There is an old Abingdon custom of throwing buns from the County Hall. Its origin is obscure, but it has been in its present form since the coronation of George III in 1761. The bun throwing is performed by the Mayor and town council who, in their robes of office, climb to the roof of the County Hall and throw buns to people assembled in the Market Place beneath. The buns are rather like hot cross buns where the cross is replaced by letters or numbers designating the cause for celebration. The example above shows PR for the visit of the Princess Royal in 2006.

Throwing small cakes for ceremonial reasons was not uncommon in late Medieval England. On a Tudor History web page, one entry says “On Palm Sunday the boys of Chippenham in Wiltshire, like those of other parishes, climbed onto the church roof to throw small cakes to the crowd below. In 1507, Palm Sunday fell on 28 March. At Chippenham Francis Gore and Nicholas Hulkebere were not among the boys sitting on the roof of the south aisle, but on the ground with those taking part in the church procession and scrambling to collect the cakes. Disastrously it was not only the cakes that came down from the roof. Two large stones fell on top of them and crushed them.”

A modern day DJ, Steve Aoki, has also made it part of his act to throw cakes at his audience as part of his show. He showers those below with ‘cake love’ as he calls it. The instream video shows a guy in a wheelchair catching some of the ‘cake love’ …

In June 2016 Abingdon will hold a ceremonial bun throwing to celebrate the 90th birthday of her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Nearby Wantage will also hold a public cake throwing against two councillors who have been derelict in their duty. Wantage is the birthplace of King Alfred who, being preoccupied with the problems of running an ancient kingdom, accidentally let some cakes burn, and was scolded by a woman who had entrusted the task to him. Accordingly the Mayor and town councillors of the town of Wantage have an ancient tradition of throwing burnt cakes at any of their members who have failed to keep their eyes on the task in hand.

Snick, snack, the pan’s hot,
We’re come a shroving
Strike while the iron’s hot –
Something’s better than nothing.
Flour’s cheap and lard’s dear
And that’s why we come a shroving here …
(Rhyme from Drayton near Abingdon quoted in May Day to Mummers – Folklore and customs in Oxfordshire.)

Children no longer beg their neighbours for ingredients for pancakes. To help us prepare for Pancake Day, the supermarkets in Abingdon each had a little display of a ready made pancake mix – massively reduced , together with JIF Lemons and maple syrup, and even eggs and flour in some places.

I probably did not follow the instructions properly with the pancake mix, as I ended up with some pale sloppy pancakes that stuck to the pan. After the third attempt I gave up.

But we do still have the basics: an egg, 3 oz (75g) flour, 5 fl oz (150ml) of milk and a pinch of salt.

That worked so much better, and came in under half the price of the pancake mix.

Thanks to Peter for sending me pictures on July 19th of the swan uppers toasting the Queen under Abingdon Bridge at the end of the Swan Upping (the annual census of swans on the River Thames between Sunbury and Abingdon).

In 2012 Swan Upping was cancelled because the river was running too fast. In 2013, swan fledglings hatched later than usual, after a cold start to the year. However, Swan Upping took place during a heat wave.

Due to that same heatwave, a report on the Friends of the Abingdon Outdoor Pool Website says opening hours were extended on Thursdays and Fridays from 6-8pm to cope with demand. The extension continues through the summer holidays so long as weather allows.