May Day, Morris Dancing and The May Queen

The May Bank Holiday weekend is a vital time for the Hastings economy.

The crowning of the new May Queen, Morris dancers, children dancing around the maypole aren't the full story. There is also the annual Jack-in-the-Green parade together with the events leading to the 'slaying' of the Jack. Also thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts descend on the town for what has become a long-standing Bank Holiday Monday tradition.

At the time of writing this (2011) the current Government is debating scrapping the May public holiday in favour for a new date in the Autumn. There seems to be no logic to the reasoning behind this and Hastings would be one of many towns who will lose millions of pounds financially by scrapping a traditional celebration.

However I hope that tradition is maintained and I hope you enjoy the pictures and video from these events. Although it happens over the same weekend I am splitting this important holiday into three parts.

This entry is to celebrate the crowning of the new May Queen with Maypole dancing and Morris dancers. Elsewhere in the menu you will find the link for Jack-In-The-Green and also for Motorbikes in May.

So assuming the Government has a rethink on abolishing the May Bank holiday hopefully generations to come will enjoy the variety of entertainment that is available in Hastings over this important weekend.

Incidentally parts 2 and 3 of this video can be found on the player at the bottom of the page