Abigail King

May Day Madness

Both sides of La Manche (aka the English Channel), celebrate May Day, a fusion between traditional pagan festivals and more recent workers’ rights.

In France, the bank holiday falls on May 1st, whereas England grants the first Monday in May to ensure a long weekend. But the differences run deeper than that….

In Oxford, all-night revellers and schoolchildren (generally in two separate groups), gather at dawn to hear the hushed tones of Magdalen College choir. For a short while, all is quiet, before mayhem descends and the pubs throw open their doors – at 6 am.

Morris Dancing fills the streets, with men in voluminous white blouses, bells, sticks and handkerchiefs dancing in formation.

Across the country, children wear face-paint and skip around a Maypole, a rod with rainbow ribbons attached at the top. Each child holds one ribbon and the choreography creates swirling patterns of colour.

In France, things are a little different. In the days before the holiday, workers buy a lily of the valley, a genteel pearly white flower, to present to a lady. This refreshingly sweet practice stems from the Court of Charles IX, and everyone overlooks the ironic conflict with the day’s other purpose – to commemorate the Republic’s workers’ rights. As a concession, sales of flower are tax-free and the porte-bonheur, or good luck charm, kickstarts the month with more bank holidays than any other.

Of course, in both countries many people mark the occasion with their own rituals – heading to DIY shops or hosting barbecues. These modern interpretations reflect the age-old promise of May Day – the hope that summer is around the corner.

For more on dances from around the world, see Famous Dances in Famous Places, When Feet Say More Than Words.  For more of my blog see Inside the Travel Lab.

Photo Credits – Maypole by Pete Ashton, Morris Dancers by red betty black.