The thrills and spills of Nottingham's famous Goose Fair are set to return in 2022 - for longer than ever before. After an absence of two years due to the pandemic, the spectacle is expected to be extended to ten days as a special one-off.
In recent years the annual extravaganza of white knuckle rides, children's rides, side shows and fairground food has taken place over five days, attracting a crowd of 420,000 visitors. But there's a lot of making up to do after the fair was written off in 2020 and 2021 due to the uncertainties surrounding Covid.
For 2022 the Showman's Guild and Nottingham City Council have agreed in principle to double the length of fun family event, meaning it would run from Friday September 30 to Sunday October 9 at Forest Recreation Ground.
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William Percival, chairman of the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Showmen's Guild, said: "The showmen have agreed for Goose Fair for this year to be a ten-day fair mainly to spread the people out, offering them more days to come, as we are hoping there will be a lot of people. "We have agreed in principle. There's still other bits and bobs we're got to iron out with the council first before we sign the contract.
We haven't got any issues at our end. Hopefully we'll get Goose Fair back to what it was in 2019. That's what we've asked for and to allow it to be run as it's always run.
"It would be nice to have a bumper turn out. The fairs we did last year and are doing this year people seem to be attending so we're hoping we'll have a big attendance."
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It would be the longest event in the history of Goose Fair, which goes back more than 700 years. Mr Percival added: "Many, many years ago it originally started as an eight-day fair going back to when it was in the Old Market Square but eventually it moved onto the Forest and it was only a three-day fair.
"Then we moved onto four days with the Wednesday and when the centenary year was on we extended it five days until the Sunday which proved a big success so we've continued with the five days ever since."
Nottingham City Council confirmed support for a ten-day fair being planned in 2022 in principle to the Showmen’s Guild. A council spokesman said: "However, we must undergo a process of assurance testing both within the council and with external partners to ensure the fair can be delivered safely and with the minimum of increased impact.
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"These assurances would be tested through the usual major event planning processes. We believe there is much to learn from staging a longer event, particularly this year, and this trial and these findings would be used to review options for the future."
Coun Eunice Campbell-Clark, Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture, said: “After two years of cancellations, we are so glad to be able start planning for the 2022 fair and we are working collaboratively with the Guild to plan and ensure that any ten-day event can be a real success both for its members and Nottingham residents and visitors alike. We look forward to confirming more detailed plans in due course.”
The decision follows last year's controversy when council plans to erect a perimeter fence around the recreation ground and charge admission were dismissed outright by the Showman's Guild. The issue was further complicated by government proposals for Covid passports for large-scale events.
Despite the 2021 fair not going ahead the tradition of reading the charter and ringing the bells by the Lord Mayor to signal the official opening still went ahead in Old Market Square. The proceedings were overseen by Goosey, the Goose Fair mascot, who came to roost in Slab Square for just one day rather than in her usual spot on the roundabout near the recreation ground.
