Ickwell May Day

Follow the day from Northill to the Green

The organisers have announced Monday 3 May 2027 as the next May Day. The visitor programme begins at The Crown in Northill, with Morris dancing and the gathering of decorated hoops, before a procession heads to Ickwell Green. The May Queen is crowned in the arena and the dancing follows. The website's standing timetable can change, so check it again nearer the date. You can enjoy the earlier village gathering or concentrate on the crowning and maypole; deciding in advance saves you arriving in the gap between the two.

If you're watching the procession, leave a clear path for the children and their attendants. Move with the crowd rather than cutting across the organised party for photos. The organisers say the road between the villages is closed to vehicles during the procession, so plan parking and meeting points around that. Make a note of where you left the car or your pick-up point before you walk off, especially if your group has split between Northill and the Green.

Ribbons, hoops and the Old Scholars

The decorated hoops are a small detail worth seeking out. The children taking part make them with flowers, ribbon and their own ideas, then bring them to the Northill gathering for judging. On the Green, the maypole dancers weave the familiar ribbons into shifting patterns. Calendar Customs describes both the children's dances and the adult Old Scholars, a group of 24 whose members often danced here when they were young. Watching the different groups gives the afternoon far more variety than a single maypole photo suggests.

This is an organised local performance. The festival links children's involvement to the parish villages and schools, with rehearsals in the run-up to May Day. Enjoy the dancing from the audience rather than wandering into the arena, and don't take a pretty hoop as a pass into the procession. If you have a genuine local connection and would like a child to take part, contact the committee in good time. All that preparation is what keeps the festival going, even though the finished celebration looks delightfully effortless from your seat.

A pole with a documented past

Bedfordshire Archives holds a wonderfully concrete glimpse of sixteenth-century May celebrations in the Northill parish accounts: the expenses included food, drink, a minstrel, Morris clothing and bells. Its historian notes carefully that the records don't say whether the festivities took place at Northill, Ickwell or both. That's a better way to understand the long story than pinning every modern detail on one ancient origin. What the records do show is a community paying for a celebration, with music and dancing already important.

The archive also describes the permanent maypole put up in 1872, replacing poles that had been raised for the occasion and taken down again afterwards. Later accounts record a replacement after the older pole became unsound, and interruptions to the ceremonies on the Green during the First World War. A lasting tradition can include repairs and pauses. As you watch today's dancers, the real continuity is the care that goes into making May Day happen again, not a belief that nothing has ever changed.

Travel and the bank holiday journey home

The organisers name Biggleswade, Sandy and Bedford as railway approaches, and give SG18 9EE for Ickwell Green. We've used Biggleswade as the rail gateway here, but you'll still need an onward journey. Check the bank holiday timetable from your own starting point, then arrange how you'll reach the Green and get back after the programme. If you book a taxi, name the village and agree a pick-up point that will still be reachable while procession traffic restrictions are in place.

There's event parking, with stewards directing visitors, and disabled parking close to the arena. Use those arrangements rather than treating every verge or village driveway as overflow. If someone in your group can't manage much walking, ask the committee about the best arrival point before deciding to watch in both Northill and Ickwell. The procession links two places, so the handiest first stop may not be the easiest place to finish. Keep the journey home simple enough that you can stay for the dances you came to see.

Seating, weather and a family visit

There's paid seating inside the maypole arena, and Calendar Customs mentions the option of watching from outside the cordon. Check the current arena price when budgeting; refreshment stalls and other purchases are extra. A seat can be welcome over a long afternoon, but ask about the layout and access if someone in your party needs a particular position. The organisers confirm toilets and disabled parking, though there's no full festival access assessment on the pages we checked.

The weather policy is well worth knowing: the procession and crowning are meant to go ahead in poor weather, but if conditions underfoot are unsafe, the dancing may be cut short or moved to another date. Calendar Customs records that in wet 2024 the dancing still went ahead in a reduced form. Bring layers and footwear for grass, and let the day's decision set your expectations. With children, fit in a drink and a toilet break before you settle into your spot. The best viewpoint is one where they can see without blocking the performers or needing to be hoisted above everybody else.

Two nearby outings for a longer stay

Shuttleworth at Old Warden offers the Collection and the Swiss Garden, with separate visitor tickets and its own operating calendar. Its access information describes ramps through the hangars, accessible paths and seating in the garden, and a wheelchair-accessible woodland walk. Check its programme before pairing it with May Day, as special air-show days run differently. It works best as part of a longer Bedfordshire stay rather than something squeezed into the gap just before the crowning.

RSPB The Lodge at Sandy is another option, with heathland, woodland and gardens. The reserve's visitor information separates the more level garden routes from steeper or stepped trails, which helps if your group has mixed mobility. Pick a trail from its current maps, and check opening, parking and dog restrictions before you travel. These are two independent attractions, each needing its own time and transport plan. Choose whichever suits your interests, keep the festival afternoon unhurried and resist turning a lovely local celebration into a race between car parks.

Where it is

Map pin shows the approximate area where the event happens. Open in OpenStreetMap ↗

Go straight to the source

Independent research. The organiser’s own information always wins — we have not visited or tested the journeys.

• Organiser, announced date and visitor programme ↗
• Organiser’s 2026 festival gallery ↗
• Bedfordshire Archives: documented history ↗
• Northill Parish Council: 2026 sequence and road arrangements ↗
• Organiser: May Queen eligibility ↗
• Calendar Customs: watching and 2024 account ↗
• Maypole photograph with object location ↗
• Shuttleworth visitor information ↗
• Shuttleworth access information ↗
• RSPB The Lodge ↗
• Ickwell Green postcode: nearest station ↗