I love fairgrounds; the lights, the sights, the sounds, the smells, the atmosphere. And I will always have a soft spot for the Nottingham Goose Fair; which remains the largest travelling fair in Europe. Arriving and setting up on the Wednesday, the fair lasted for three days from Thursday to Saturday and was gone by midnight on the Sunday. 

Originally held in September the fair was a livestock and trade fair, famous for it’s geese, driven into the fair from Lincolnshire and Norfolk, to be sold for Michaelmas; the story we children were always told was that the farmers would put ‘tar and sand’ shoes on the feet of the the geese so they didn’t get sore feet on the long walk to the fair; and latterly it’s cheeses. In 1766; a year of severe food shortages due to poor harvests; traders were selling their cheeses at grossly inflated prices. On the night of of 2nd October this led to the Nottingham Cheese Riot when a gang of locals; ’rude lads’; tried to stop some merchants from Lincolnshire who had purchased cheese at the fair from taking the cheese out of Nottingham. Rioting broke out, with shop windows being broken and looting taking place throughout the town. The poor Mayor of Nottingham was even knocked unconscious by a large wheel of cheese when he tried to restore order! 

From where we lived in Nottingham I would look out from my bedroom window and the sight of the fair in the distance always filled me with excitement. I was taken along from a very young age and one of my earliest memories was one occasion, whenI’d be about three years old the whole family; mum, dad, granny, macar (granddad) and I; were going to the fair. We were having liver for dinner before going out but, despite all their cajoling and bribery, I was refusing to eat it. They tried everything, including chopping the liver into tiny fragments and mixing it with mashed potato and a dollop of ketchup; I can still see the unsettling colour of it on my plate to this day!

I remember the thrill of anticipation as we pulled onto the soggy grass parking area at the side of the fair. I would be hopping around with excitement as my sister and I were bundled into our coats and hats before making our way into the fair. We would stroll along the top parade past the baby rides and stalls spinning sweet, sticky candy floss around a wooden stick or dipping juicy apples into a vat of shiny red toffee, selling Grantham gingerbread and brandy snaps and my favourite of all, the Cock On A Stick stall; unique to Goose Fair since 1950; full of brightly coloured cockerel shaped lollipops, all made by one man, Ray Brooks, until he recently retired aged 94. Thankfully a young fairground confectioner from Wales is continuing the tradition.

On we would wander, past the hot dog stands with their steaming pans of sausages and onions; the mushy pea stall with it’s coal filled braziers keeping the huge pots of peas hot, ready to be served with a generous dollop of mint sauce, a Goose Fair staple; the appetising aromas of the food mixing with the industrial aromas of diesel, steam and sulphur. Weaving our way through balloon sellers and pedlars of cheap toys, guaranteed to fall apart before you reached home, we would wend our way between the Hook-A-Duck and Hoopla stalls, all promising the possibility of winning that huge teddy bear, finally arriving at the main part of the fair, full of gaily painted carousels, thrilling rides and helter-skelters. The things I remember best from my early childhood trips to Goose Fair are cuddling up to my parents on the Caterpillar as it’s huge green, hooped hood covered us as it trundled round and round and up and down; bobbing up and down on the horses of the Carousel; shrieking and laughing as the Flying Coaster bounced us off it’s ski jump ramp; flying high with my dad on the Jet and whizzing round on the Speedway and falling over on The Cakewalk. And, of course, we always went on one of our dad’s favourites, the Dodgems with their flash and fizz sparks of electricity flying through the air.

By far and away my favourite and the most fun of all though were the Steam Yachts. We would try and wait until we were at the front of the queue before getting on this ride as the main aim was to get as far back as possible. Once seated you grabbed the rope dangling in front of you; or, if you were lucky enough to be at the very back, wove your arms through the netting; and waited for the ride to begin. The two boats would swing higher and higher until they were all but vertical to the ground and we would be clinging on to our ropes as we hung high above the people at the other end. As the boat swung the other way we would be flung back onto the bench as the folk at the other end dangled above us. The modern iterations of this ride such as the Pirate Ship are nowhere near as much fun. 

I grew up, moved away from Nottingham, got married and had a family so Goose Fair became a thing of the past but my love of fairgrounds and rides has never deserted me. I have enjoyed many a theme park both here and throughout Europe; from Alton Towers to Europa Park in Germany, Gardaland in Italy and, of course, several trips to Disneyland Paris; but none of these can quite live up to the atmosphere of a travelling fair like Goose Fair. 

And then, last week Netti commented that she was ready for a good day out with the kids and we were racking our brains for things to do that weren’t a walk. Then I had a lightbulb moment. The first week of October was just around the corner and that could only mean one thing. Goose Fair. After a quick “Duck,Duck,Go” I discovered that the fair was was running for a full ten days this year from Friday 29^th September to October 8^th. I mentioned this to Netti and the decision was made. After careful consideration; Netti had a day off and the kids weren’t at college; we chose the first day of the fair as this was the best day for everyone.

Friday was a warm and pleasant day and the sun was beating down as we set off to Nottingham. The kids still had no idea where we were going; they thought it was a walk of some kind because they’d been told to dress appropriately. We called in at MacDonalds on the way so we could start enjoying the fair with no one being hangry. We parked at the Phoenix Park Park & Ride and caught the tram to the fair. Their faces were a picture as the tram pulled up at the fairground. As it was only just past 4pm it wasn’t too crowded as we wandered between the rides, the kids eagerly deciding what they wanted to go on first. They picked the Ghost Train, where we were “frightened’ by a chap dressed in a black lycra suit and a mask jumping out at us. Whilst Netti took the boys on a gravity ride Lil and I took a spin or several on the carousel before meeting up again for the mini roller coaster and a Fun House, where all went OK until I had to exit through a moving rat wheel which Netti and the kids all managed to get through with no problems; Joey nearly did a 360 degree cartwheel; but me? Oh no! I went arse over tit, literally, was hurled out of the wheel and landed in a heap in front of all four of them as they doubled over laughing. I am never going into a fun house ever again! We made our way to the food stalls at the bottom of the park taking in a quick totter on the Cakewalk; the oldest ride at the fair; for old times sake.     

As we wandered round the fair I felt that old, remembered thrill. The twinkling of the lights against the darkening sky; the familiar smell of hot dogs and candy floss mingled with the diesel from the big engines; their rumble and thrum as they powered the rides providing a comforting obbligato to the cacophony of music pounding from the rides, the calls of the hawkers on the Hook-a-Duck stalls and the rattle and ping of the arcade games. A brief break from the rides for drinks and a couple of gos on the Roll Down stall where Lils won a stuffed baby octopus before being bounced up and down on the Jump And Smile ride where every time we thought it was done off we went again for a good five minutes. And surprisingly I came away bruise free. Another Fun House, which I declined no matter how much they cajoled, and a whirl on the Waltzers which had Joey in fits of giggles. As we made our way our way up to the top parade in search of food we were distracted by a side stall where we were conned out of £8 playing a darts game but we were enjoying our chat with the chap running it so much that we didn’t mind too much.

After we had eaten; mushy peas and mint sauce for me, obviously; Netti and Lils risked the high velocity spin of the Super Star before finishing our day walking round the Haunted House. Made all the more fun when Netti set off a loud horn as we were feeling our way along a pitch black corridor. As I turned the corner at the end all I saw was Joey curled up in a ball on the floor and Netti doubled over and crying with laughter. We went for a final meander through the stalls; picking up some candy floss; before Lils and I went on the ferris wheel so I could take some photos of the lit up fairground from above. After a fun filled four and a half hours we were all well and truly ready for home.

And just to prove I can never get enough of a good fair I got do do it all again when Harvey surprised us all by saying he would like to go along. Thankfully, after an iffy weekend and a thoroughly miserable Monday, the good weather returned for the Tuesday. This time Kate drove us to Nottingham where we once again parked at the Park & Ride. We arrived at the fair just after 4pm and headed straight up to the top parade for food. Kate spotted a little fun house which she and Harvey went in. No amount of pleading got me to relent though so I watched from afar as they popped out here and there. Kate braved the slide to the exit landing in a puddle of rain in the middle of the landing mat and ended up with a wet bottom. Harvey took the stairs down. As we wandered along the parade I spotted the Cock-On-A-Stick stall. How had I missed it on the Friday? And the original Mushy Pea stall! It just goes to show how differently people do the same thing. Where Netti and her tribe were eager to get on the rides Kate and Harvey enjoyed wandering along the stalls first. Once we were fed it was time to dive into the main part of the fair.

Next Kate wanted to go on the Waltzers where we got a good long ride and plenty of spinning. I was definitely dizzy when I came off this time. We were looking for the Jump & Smile ride when I stopped to show Harvey The Skid; one of the oldest rides at the fair; other than the Cake Walk; and one of only three left in the country. It turned out to be his favourite ride of the fair, possibly because we let him take control of the pedal and he enjoyed a full five minutes of throwing Kate and me around in our seats.

I don’t think the Jump & Smile we picked was quite as good as the one on Friday but it was less punishing on my ribs. Then they saw the bulls! Of course they had to have a go and I’ve got the video to show how often they fell off! For his next ride Harvey wanted to go on the Dodgems. This is one ride I have avoided ever since my teen years. I don’t know why but I really don’t like the Dodgems, I just can’t see the attraction of having folk run into you for fun. Not to worry, I could take pictures instead. Next we had a wander up to the only “white knuckle ride” we  went on; I think it was called The Rhythm Dancer; which goes up and round several times which threw me about in my seat resulting in; as I found out the next morning; a whack-off bruise to my right thigh. By now Harvey was beginning to have had enough so, since he loves the Dodgems and had begged to go on them again we took him for a final ride. This time they had separate cars so they could chase and dodge each other and they had a whale of a time doing it.

As Harvey wanted some noodles; he’d espied them earlier; we returned to the top parade. Along the way they won a stuffed puppy on the Hook-A-Puppy stall, and because he’d asked if he could try it, we bought candy floss. Then for the first time ever, I bought myself a Cock-On-A-Stick, served with a good dollop of innuendo and lewd banter which had Harvey gasping “Mu-uum!” and “Grannyyyy!” But he didn’t say no to a Cock though! Whilst Kate and Harvey went in search of the noodles I took myself off to the Original Mushy Pea Stall and treated myself to a huge pot of steaming peas drowning in a sea of mint sauce which I tucked into as we wended our way out of the fair to catch the tram and head for home.

I thoroughly enjoyed both my trips to Goose Fair as it meant that I could enjoy being with each of family without feeling I’d got to split my time between them. Plus it was completely different each time and it was interesting to see how two different sets of people from the same family enjoy the same thing but in different ways and because they do I got to go on much more than I would have if we’d been all together. 

To see more photos click on the cock!