Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling — the race after a cheese (England)
This may be the most absurd race in the world — and the only one whose trophy can be eaten. At Cooper's Hill, near Brockworth in Gloucestershire, a near-vertical, 180-metre hill serves as the track: a 7-to-9-pound wheel of Double Gloucester (about 3–4 kg) is released down the slope, reaching speeds approaching 70 mph (about 110 km/h). Behind it, dozens of participants throw themselves into the void, rolling, falling, tumbling. The first to the bottom wins… the cheese. Four races, uphill and downhill, pace the day.
The maddest part of this story is that nobody organises anything. Let us say it upfront, as Festival TV's honesty requires: the Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake has no official organiser — the historic committee has disbanded, there is no official website, and every year the Tewkesbury district Safety Advisory Group declares the event "unsafe". It happens anyway, carried by local tradition alone. Ambulance crews stand by: the falls are violent, and the press reports participants evacuated every year. Nobody ever really catches the cheese, either: at 70 mph, it always wins.
Where does this madness come from? The origins are uncertain — pagan fertility rites, grazing rights? The tradition is said to be several centuries old; its first written traces date to 1826 according to several accounts, 1836 according to Wikipedia: the 2026 edition thus marked, give or take, the 200th documented anniversary. According to the British press, hundreds of participants and thousands of spectators gather on the hill each year, with free access.
The last edition was held on Monday 25 May 2026, Spring Bank Holiday day; the next one is expected on Monday 31 May 2027 — "anticipated", because without an organizer, no one "confirms it". Honourable mention, at the door of our Top 10 of the most unusual festivals: a stronger tradition than bans, warnings... and common sense.
Practical information
Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake — ⚠️ informal tradition, with no official organiser and no official website (declared "unsafe" every year by the Tewkesbury Safety Advisory Group)
Where: Cooper's Hill, Brockworth (Gloucestershire), England
Next edition expected: Monday, 31 May 2027 (Spring Bank Holiday Monday) — latest edition: 25 May 2026
Access: free (public); participation at your own risk — first aid on site
Tickets: none (informal event)
— Moïse 1er, the Festival Explorer