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Randwick Wap
| The Randwick Wap involves a colourful procession through the village which is led by the Mop Man who carries a wet mop to clear the crowds. The procession stretches from the War Memorial to the Mayor’s Pool at which point the mayor is dunked in the pond and then washed with spring water. Cheese rolling At the end of the procession, traditional cheese rolling takes place at Well Leaze. Randwick is one of only two villages which still participates in cheese rolling whereby two double Gloucester cheeses are rolled around the church anti-clockwise. Rolling in this direction is thought to ward off evil spirits. Any cheese which is still intact at the end of the rolling is eaten by the participants. The Randwick Wap was banned in the nineteenth century due to alcohol related misdemeanours but was subsequently revived in 1972. The Origins The origins are unclear but tradition has it that when the church was built some 700 years ago, one of the workmen was so persistently drunk that his colleagues would dunk him in the pond. It has also been linked to the Anglo Saxon word ‘Wappenshaw’ referring to the men in the village gathering together to show they were prepared for battle. |
Useful Information
Nearby Towns: Stroud, Painswick
Nearby Cotswold Hotels: The Bear of Rodborough Hotel, Stonehouse Court, The Stroud Hotel, Burleigh Court
Similar Cotswold Attractions: Cotswold Olympic Games, Cotswold Wildlife Park, Golf Courses, Hidcote Manor, Long Distance Walks (100 miles+), Medium Distance Walks (50-100 miles), Oxford Botanic Gardens, Painswick Ancient Clypping Ceremony, Short Distance Walks (11-50 miles), Shorter Distance Walks (less than 10 miles), St Briavels Bread and Cheese Dole, The Rococo Gardens, Woolsack Races, Badminton Horse Trials, Broadway Tower, Cheese Rolling at Cooper’s Hill, Cheltenham Gold Cup
