Slideshow: Travellers home in on fair by the thousand - Cambridgeshire

From cambridge-news.co.uk

Thousands of Travellers from across the country descended on Cambridge for the annual Midsummer Fair.

But stall and ride owners at the fair – which has been going for 801 years – were disappointed by the turnout, blaming the recession and the weather.

And they also blamed a warning to motorists from Cambridgeshire police to expect added congestion on city centre roads during the event.

Alexis Morris, who was running a helter-skelter said: “The weather has not been kind to us and everyone seems to be short of money. It’s been very quiet and I wish the police hadn’t told people there would be congestion. It just puts people off coming.”

A stall holder selling food said: “The last time I was here was six years ago and this year has been very quiet. Business has not been great.”

But the low turnout did not dampen the spirits of Travellers making the annual pilgrimage.

Traveller Tom Lee, 29, of Wickford, Essex, was at the fair with his three children.

He said: “We come here every year to see old friends and family we haven’t seen for a while, and the youngsters come here to maybe meet their future husband or wife. It’s tradition. We are having a great time. The kids love it.”

Traveller Carly Holland, 18, of Northamptonshire, said: “It’s a fantastic fair and we always come here every year to see old friends and hopefully make some new friends.”

Cherie Price, 19, also of Northamptonshire, said: “I love it here. We’ll be going on the rides later and meeting up with friends to catch up from last year.”

One of the oldest stall holders at the fair – once called a ‘pot fair’ because of the chinaware once traded – was David Carter of Carters Capo di Monte Ltd based in Walsall, who is in his 70s.

He sells fine porcelain to Travellers, with some items on his stall worth £10,000.

Mr Carter said: “My family has been coming here since 1839 and I started just after the war.

“I eat at Midsummer House every night when I am here and last year the chef Daniel Clifford even came out to my stall and cooked me up a meal.”

The fair on Midsummer Common opened on Wednesday and finishes today.

Extra police officers were on duty and supported security teams at the entrances to the fair.

Traffic on Saturday was backed up around Mitcham’s corner, as predicted by police.