Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling
25 May 2026 · movable holiday — Hold on! The cheese is flying and I'm chasing it down the hill!
Every year on the Spring Bank Holiday (the last Monday in May), Cooper's Hill near Brockworth in Gloucestershire hosts one of England's oddest contests. A wheel of Double Gloucester cheese is sent rolling from the top of an extremely steep slope, and competitors launch themselves after it. The first person to reach the bottom wins, though hardly anyone stays on their feet, so the descent looks more like a tumble. The winner takes home the cheese itself. The custom is very old and is linked to a local wake (an annual village festival). Its exact origin is not well documented. Since 2010 the event has not been officially organised, yet people still gather. Because the terrain is dangerous, injuries are common, and runners and spectators alike take a risk. The date is movable: it follows the British bank holiday calendar rather than any celestial event. Still, late spring brings long, light evenings, and people love to be outdoors.
Flying across the sky: An ethereal, bluish-silver figure made of luminous dots and thin lines, like a constellation: a big round wheel of cheese rolling across the night sky
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