Up The May!
Oxford's wildest day - the first of May
For over 500 years, choristers have sung from the top of Magdalen Tower in Oxford as the sun rises at 0600 on 1st May. On the streets below there is a huge throng of revellers, many of whom have spent the night partying.
Here follows a photo-story - as I share with you a rather wonderful few hours. I am very fortunate to get the occasional invitation to the top of the tower to take photographs - last time was 2017. I have been the choir’s photographer since my son was one of those boys (you see, this is not a piece about hedgehogs!!!)
Mark Williams, the choir master, who has the official title of Informator Choristarum, told a journalist about the conditions that make for a challenging performance - these include primary school age children, students who have been up all night, a very steep climb up a tower at 0530, a sloping roof … yes, this has all of those.
My flurry of activity began the day before, as the wonderful Robin Ince came to town to launch his new book, Normally Weird and Weirdly Normal, to the people of Oxford. He is a friend who has got me doing things I never thought I would do … yes, I have a niche of hedgehog standup!
Straight from Robin’s gig to another old friend, Stephen Hancock - who was launching his latest poetry collection in the best pub! The Isis Farmhouse sits beside the river, accessible only by the towpath, and hosts amazing nights of music a fun.
I left the pub before the dancing - I can’t be up all night anymore! The alarm was set for 0400 - leaving, with Zoe Broughton, who was organising the livestream, in time to start the climb before 0500.
In 2020, the choir was not able to greet the dawn as usual, so a carefully edited zoom choir was put together. In 2021, it was decided that if the choir did as usual, there would be a crowd, which was still not a good thing to bring together, so we filmed the whole event a few days before, edited it together and broadcast this at 0600 on 1st May … that was a first - and people all over the world loved seeing the video. So for 2022, Zoe suggested live-streaming … she has been doing the same for Extinction Rebellion and other protest groups - and it can be done just with your phone. And now it has become part of the tradition … the first time in over 500 years vast numbers of people have been able to see what goes on up the tower!
As we got our kits together - the streets started to fill.
Choristers began to arrive - I forgot to add, not only are there 172 steep, uneven and narrow steps, there is also a 3 metre vertical ladder to get onto the roof!
Everyone takes a moment to look at the crowds. This year was the biggest ever, I think, with the council estimating over 16,000 people gathered to listen to 15 minutes of music and prayer.
As you can see in the picture, people also come by boat!
And then, at 0600, the bells chime, the crowd goes silent, and after the 6th beat the choir starts to sing the traditional Hymnus Eucharisticus. Following this the Dean of Divinity, Andrew Bowyer, offers up prayers, and blesses the city, the university and the choir.
More music follows - one year the choir segued very beautifully into Somewhere Over the Rainbow - but the more conservative component of the college frowned fusty frowns! So, we had The Summer is Icumen In to round things off.
As that stops, and the applause thunders, the bells start to ring - making the tower ever so slightly sway - and throughout the streets, the partying recommences - samba bands, Morris dancers, the medieval folk band on the steps of the Bodleian Library … I missed most of that, getting to the streets in time for the disco!
This is a crowd of people who have been coming for so many years - children brought in prams are now in pubs! When we had a young family we would meet so many of the kids’ classmates - all of whom were about to head into a very bleary day at school!
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What fun! I never knew about this before! I fell in love with Oxford when I visited there once. Would love to come back and explore further.
Sounds glorious