World Stinging Nettle Eating Championship

What to expect

Nettles are picked the day before and cut into stalks about two feet long. When the clock starts, competitors have one hour to strip and eat as many leaves as they can, and every leaf on a stalk must go before it counts. Officials then measure the bare stalks to find the winner. Drinks are allowed and leaves can be rolled, scrunched or dipped to take the edge off, but being sick means instant disqualification. Expect green teeth, black tongues, a lot of grimacing and a pub garden full of people wincing on everyone's behalf.

The story behind it

The championship grew out of a nettle-growing contest at The Bottle Inn around forty years ago. One contestant boasted that he would eat any nettle longer than his, someone produced a longer one, and a new competition was born. After the pub closed in 2019 the event moved for a few years to a nearby cider farm, but it returned home to Marshwood after The Bottle Inn reopened under new landlords in 2025. In 2026 Guinness World Records reported both reigning champions keeping their titles.

Getting there and home

Marshwood is deep in the Marshwood Vale, on the B3165 between Lyme Regis and Crewkerne. The nearest stations are Axminster, about seven miles away on the London Waterloo to Exeter line, and Crewkerne. Buses are sparse, so a taxi, lift or car is the realistic option. Parking around a small country pub on a busy day will be limited, so share lifts if you can and park considerately on village lanes.

Watching, taking part and tips

Entrants must be over 18. If you fancy a go, contact the pub well ahead, as places can be limited. Spectators can wander up to watch from the garden. Bring sunscreen and a hat in case of a warm June evening, and a jumper in case it isn't. This is a pub event centred on endurance and drinking, so judge for yourself whether it suits younger children.

Eating and drinking

The Bottle Inn calls itself a traditional pub, not a restaurant. Normally that means draught ales, ciders, bottled drinks and simple bar snacks, including locally baked pasties — good to know if someone in your party prefers a lunch that has never grown in a ditch. Plan around a pub visit, and ask what food will be on during the championship, especially if you need a proper meal or have dietary requirements. A festival menu, table service and a seat of your own are all separate questions; a bar doesn't promise any of them. The pub also puts on music and beer or cider events, so ask whether your visit is just the contest or part of a wider weekend. And sort out your journey home before the cider starts flowing; the championship is memorable enough without a transport puzzle at the end.

Where to watch

One number worth knowing before you watch: 68 feet. Guinness World Records lists that as Lucy Dermody's female championship record, set at the Bottle Inn in June 2025 and equalled when she kept her title in June 2026. It measures the nettle stems stripped of their leaves — not anyone's height, the weight of a plateful or the length of the eating table. Keep an eye on the checking and counting as well as the eating, because that's where apparent chaos turns into a result you can follow. Enjoy the record as part of the spectacle, not as a dare for your next country walk. Guinness notes that the championship collects and prepares its own nettles, so a handful picked from the hedge is no excuse for an unofficial heat. Thinking of entering? Get the organisers' current instructions first.

Make a day of it nearby

For an outing of a different kind, the National Trust's Lambert's and Coney's Castle gives you two Iron Age hillforts near Marshwood. Lambert's has visible banks and ditches; Coney's has ramparts enclosing two distinct areas. Pick one if you'd like time to explore properly rather than ticking off both. They're quite different underfoot: the Trust describes grassy, fairly flat ground at Lambert's, while the ramparts at Coney's are unsuitable for many wheelchairs and pushchairs. There are no toilets at either. Read the Trust's parking instructions before you set off, including its warning that phone signal and digital payment are unreliable — so set up the parking application in advance. Wear sensible shoes and judge the weather and ground for yourself; the hillforts have nothing to do with the pub's event arrangements.

Accessibility and families

If you're staying longer in Dorset, Golden Cap is another National Trust option, with coastal countryside looking out over the Jurassic Coast. It's a different sort of outing from the hillforts, so choose a route for the walking you actually want to do — not every path has to end at the summit. The Trust describes rolling landscape, grassy paths, rough ground and gradients. It also points to a broad, compacted circular route at Langdon Hill suitable for many wheelchairs and pushchairs, reached through a RADAR-key gate; check the detailed access information if that's the one you need. If the championship is your priority, save this for another morning. Giving the coast its own slot leaves room for changeable weather, and saves you timing your pub arrival around a hopeful guess at a walk you've never done.

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.

• Guinness World Records 2026 report ↗
• AOL: competition returns to the Bottle Inn ↗
• Bottle Inn: pub and event information ↗
• Guinness: female championship record and format ↗
• National Trust: Lambert’s and Coney’s Castle ↗
• National Trust: Golden Cap visitor access ↗