Morning Lucy,
We certainly had never heard of the Padstow Obby Oss Festival when we booked our travel to Cornwall.
This May Day, locals will spend the night decorating the town’s streets with flags, flowers and greenery complete with a maypole and the following morning two “osses”, one red and one blue emerge from their stables. The “osses”, swirling and dancing proceed through Padstow’s streets taunted by a Teazer, who will lead the dance with theatrical movements. The accompanying retinue are dressed all in white with their costumes decorated with ribbons and sprays of cowslips and bluebells.
The return of the festival for the first time since the Pandemic made life extra alive in Padstow. The little town was standing tall!
Here’s a YouTube video of the 11AM dance, which we caught a bit of before heading off to St. Enodoc Golf Club, opting to chase the little white ball over the osses.
And for the entire history of the celebration, check this out from 1953.
