The Box is a major cultural and heritage attraction and archive, which opened in Plymouth’s city centre in September 2020. Its collection, formally the South West Film and Television Archive (SWFTA), is the regional film archive for the South West of England, comprising the combined programme libraries of Westward Television and Television South West (TSW). It also includes a significant number of donated film collections dating back to the early 1890s.
This film is part of Free
Gala Day at St Columb Major
Villagers furry dance
From the collection of:
Overview
Gala Day takes place on Shrovetide or the weekend leading up to Shrove Tuesday and the Christian season of Lent. Traditionally the Church allowed a celebration or fat eating before fasting known also in many countries as Mardi Gras meaning fat Tuesday. Villagers furry dance through the streets. The word furry is thought to come from the Latin feria meaning fair but also free day or holiday and was originally a time of trading.
Along with St Ives, St Columb hosts a medieval hurling game with a silver ball where two teams, townsmen on the one hand and countrymen on the other compete to carry a silver ball of applewood to opposing goals. The town derives its motto from this game: Town and Country, Do Your Best.
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