Back to medieval times as Ancient Oak Fayre recreates skills and crafts

The Ancient Oak Fayre offered a thrilling schedule of medieval skills, trades and entertainment at Quy Park at the weekend, including stunt horse riders, drums troupes, music, traders and plenty of food and drink.

The festival site covers a couple of acres with a central performance area for the likes of equestrian stunt performance professionals The Horsemen Of The Knight, plus sideshows involving a chance to try out archery and axe-throwing.

Among the recreations of the early medieval period were The Knights of Skirbeck – ‘proud to be a member of The Wars of The Roses Federation’ – depicted the life of a medieval household, helping defend England from raids and competing in tournaments during the late 14th and early 15th centuries.

There was plenty for children to do at the site too, with the Fairy Glade area offering face painting and workshops while on the main pathways - set up to circle the main performance area – there was falconry, Devilstick Peat the jester, Pentacle drummers, The Mermaid tank, Watermill Wolves plus Rune talks with Saemarr on medieval and Viking living history. Music was provided by Les and Penny and Damian.

The Nordr Drakka, based in Norwich, is a reenactment society which performs in Eastern and Western styles of fighting.

Both involve longswords, and recreate the way fighters fought – “100 per cent of what it would have been like, so not everyone had helmets”, explained one of the group. The Eastern hit zones are the ‘shorts and T-shirt’ area, while the Western adds the legs, but there’s no headshots for either style.

“I’m portraying a 9th to 10th-century Norwegian,” he added.

They clash swords, parry and launch at each other. It looks hot in the afternoon heat under armour, carrying shields and heavy lumps of metal. But the group is setting up a new level of contest called ‘real re-enactment’ which involves spears as well.

“The more axes the better,” he says to nods of agreement from his comrades in arms. The traders have come from all over - including Bristol and Derby, with some more local.

There’s jewellery, furniture, crockery, plates, cups, clothes, plus all sorts of tools and lots of drinks involving mead including from Milton Brewery.

It’s part living history, part entertainment and it proved to be a cracking festival with a really great atmosphere that provided lots of fun for everyone.