Jedburgh Ba’ Game

What to expect

Play starts in the Market Place, where balls are thrown up into the crowd and the scramble begins. Several balls are played through the afternoon, and a single game can last for hours. The Uppies are aiming for a goal by the Castle Jail at the top of the town, the Doonies for the Pleasance at the bottom, each only a couple of hundred yards away, which tells you how hard it is to get anywhere. Expect sudden runs down side streets, long stand-offs in the scrum and a crowd that knows every player. The boys' games, the Callants' Ba', start at noon and the men's games at 2pm.

The story behind it

Jedburgh has a strong claim to having played ba' for centuries, and local tradition says the very first game was played with the head of an Englishman, the ribbons on today's balls standing in for his hair. Not everyone accepts that as history, but it is told with relish. Teams are set by whether you belong north or south of the old Mercat Cross. Until the 1970s the boys played at Candlemas and the men on Fastern's E'en; the two were then combined into one day, the Thursday after Fastern's E'en, to cut disruption to local businesses.

Getting there and home

The nearest station is Tweedbank, the terminus of the Borders Railway from Edinburgh, around 15 miles away, with bus connections towards Jedburgh. By road, Jedburgh sits on the A68, which is the easy way in from Edinburgh or Newcastle. Streets in the centre are given over to the game, so park on the edge of town and walk in. Staying overnight in Jedburgh makes the late finish easier.

Watching, taking part and tips

The game belongs to Jedburgh, so visitors watch. The scrum can surge without warning, so stay at the edge, keep children close and step into a doorway if it comes your way. Wear warm, waterproof layers and boots for a February afternoon outdoors. The Market Place is the best spot for the throw-ups, but the action roams, and following it along the streets is half the fun.

Where to watch

Those ribbons are far more than decoration. Calendar Customs describes prizes for the people who claim them and cash sponsorship of individual balls, sometimes to mark an anniversary or remember a loved one. So each throw-up carries its own local meaning. If you catch a dedication, listen before you turn to the scramble: it may explain why one particular ball matters so much to the people around you.

Several balls can be in play over the afternoon, so there’s more going on than a single start and finish, and the crowd you first follow may not be the only game running. Scan the wider street before crossing or moving to a new spot, and agree a meeting point with your companions away from the throw-up area. If the tradition’s craft interests you, a good look at the ribbons before play beats squinting into the scrum for the ball. And wait for a pause; never reach for something a player is trying to keep hold of.

Accessibility and families

The Callants’ games and the men’s games are separate, but Calendar Customs warns that the younger players may still be going when the later games start, and that the streets can hold more than one moving group. So a younger game isn’t automatically a quiet corner for small children. Watch from outside the players’ route, and keep an eye on what’s happening behind you as well as in front.

The same account says roads stay open during play. That makes every crossing an ordinary traffic decision as well as a sporting one, so don’t step out just because other spectators are chasing a ball. Traffic arrangements can change from one year to the next, so ask locally before you pick your viewing spot. If you’re bringing a buggy or need a step-free position, settle into a fixed place with an easy way out rather than trying to move with the crowd. We know of no reserved accessible enclosure.

Make a day of it nearby

Jedburgh Abbey makes a fine companion to the town visit. Historic Environment Scotland says much of the medieval site is open to the public, though some parts, including the viewing gallery, are closed for conservation. Its visiting page has winter hours and detailed access information, so have a look before you go. Give the ruin some time before the game claims your attention; seeing an abbey from the street is a very different thing from wandering its interior spaces.

Mary Queen of Scots’ Visitor Centre tells a different local story in a sixteenth-century towerhouse, through paintings, objects and textiles linked with the queen. Live Borders lists it as closed from December to February, so don’t count on it as an indoor stop on a February Ba’ visit. Save it for a return trip later in the year, or ask about any exceptional opening. Both sites help set Jedburgh’s living custom in the wider town, though neither is part of the game or a guaranteed escape from its crowds.

Questions people ask

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.

• Calendar Customs: Jedburgh Ba' ↗
• Visit Jedburgh: Hand Ba' 2025 ↗
• Calendar Customs: ribbons, games and traffic ↗
• Jedburgh Tourism Alliance: local event description ↗
• Historic Environment Scotland: Jedburgh Abbey visiting ↗
• Live Borders: Mary Queen of Scots’ Visitor Centre ↗