Monthly Archives: January 2022

All the fun of the fayre

It has been a difficult couple of years for everyone – especially for the hospitality industries, who have either been banned from opening or have had to work around many new restrictions. Large events have been badly affected!

We had originally planned a Carnival in summer 2020, and our stall holders and float builders and programme sponsors and volunteers and marshalls were all ready to welcome thousands to our village. Then in March, Covid struck, and by April it was clear that a huge event – even outdoors – was not going to be possible. We postponed until summer 2021, and without the income from Carnival to act as insurance we also had to cancel our fireworks night. Other events – our Bake Off, the beer festival, and quiz nights were also impossible.

As 2021 rolled around, and Covid hadn’t disappeared, we had to make the difficult decision to postpone the Carnival again. 2021 saw a smaller Knockstock and Bake Off, complying with restrictions that were in place at the time, and we helped other groups to organise events throughout a Celebration of Summer. Entering 2022, even though government restrictions are lifting, there is not enough time to organise our full carnival – float builders won’t have the time to construct the amazing vehicle’s our crowds have come to expect, and our committee is smaller than we’d like. But …

We’re not going to sit and do nothing! This summer there will be events aplenty in Knockholt:

  • The Queen’s platinum jubillee will be celebrated with an off-street street party
  • Knockstock will run a smaller, more intimate event

Added to these, we will be running a Summer Fayre, a classic village fete on the Recreation Ground, with stalls and entertainments, music and fun. Have a look at our Fayre page for more details – and get in contact if you want to be involved!

We are hoping to run our full Carnival next year in 2023 – parade and all – but it’s been far too long already, so we can’t wait to see you in July!