East Garston

THE NEWBURY COAT

A 200 year-old wager was recreated in the Corn Exchange, Newbury this weekend, as 150 spinners, carders and tailors raced to turn wool from a sheep’s back into a furnished coat in under 12 hours. Despite a valiant effort from sheep shearers, members of the Kennet Valley Guild of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers - the task in hand took 14 hours 44 minutes, two hours over the previous record they set in 1991 at the Newbury Show. ...... (Mark Taylor (NWN)

We were delighted, but a little nervous, to be dancing outside Newbury Corn Exchange on Sunday 26th June for the second day of the Newbury Coat Event. Inside the building many craftspeople were beavering away spinning and weaving fabric which would be made into a replica of the original Newbury Coat.

Along with Basingclog Morris we were there to entertain the crowds which had gathered outside on this baking hot day. We thoroughly enjoyed watching Basingclog with their North West Morris style of dance and colourful costumes. As the name suggests their dancers wear clogs and the men wear tall hats decorated with flowers.

After the fabric had been woven it was brought outside to be dyed and fulled. The latter involved groups of people stamping on the fabric in time to marching music provided by our musicians. .

We gave several performances during the day and persuaded many members of the public to join in with us, including a few members of Basingclog. Altogether it was a memorable day even though the record time for making the coat was not beaten.

Around 3000 people attended the record attempt over Saturday and Sunday, where sheep were sheared in the Market Place at the event's beginning, and the MP for Newbury Richard Benyon paraded the finished garment through the town centre on Sunday evening. The challenge was re-enacted 20 years ago, at the Newbury Agricultural Show, when a similar coat was completed in 12 hours 36 minutes and 26 seconds.

The original coat made in 1811 can be seen at the Throckmorton family's ancestral home, in Coughton Court, Warwickshire, and the remade coat from 1991, on display during the challenge, was loaned from Shaw House where it resides.

Text : Jackie Breadmore : Mark Taylor

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