A Right Royal Boniface Bash!
Crediton Launches Celebration of the Queen’s Jubilee and Devon’s Patron Saint
The mid Devon town of Crediton has announced plans for a long weekend of community fun in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and St Boniface Day.
The four days of national holidays on June 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th will combine a number of celebratory events to honour the Queen’s 70-year reign and will also include the annual celebration of St Boniface, who was born in the town and announced in 2019 as the Patron Saint of Devon, making 5 June ‘Devon Day’.
Devon’s only native-born saint, Boniface was born in Crediton around 680AD and has been described by eminent historians as ‘The greatest Englishman of all time’. His story is now told in a sequence of eight stained-glass windows in a heritage walking trail through the town, and on the four Saturdays before June 5th a group of actors together with a guide will walk the trail and bring his story to life.
About the Event
Over the four national Jubilee days, Crediton will see many community events including the lighting of a fire beacon to join others being lit nationally, a special Town Band performance in the town square with a cream tea for people from local care homes, open-air flag-making workshops to help decorate the town and an exciting Saturday-long entertainment ‘Party in the Park’ followed by a free open-air big screen evening movie ‘Dirty Dancing’.
Sunday the 5th will see the transformation of a fir tree into a Christmas tree in the town square. The event will mark the legend of Crediton being the birthplace of the Christmas tree with scores of children and parents invited to decorate the tree with hundreds of painted pine cones and glitter. They will then join hundreds of other events up and down the country with “The BIG National Sunday Lunch”. The square will be filled with additional tables and chairs, food will be on sale from street traders as well as perimeter traders. People can also bring their own food to share. There will be a programme of live music and singing, a big Tug of War competition between teams from the town and from the Crediton Hamlets and a fancy dress competition to come dressed as a favourite Queen or King.
Devon Day
St Boniface Day, also now known as Devon Day, is set to become an annual county event that puts Crediton firmly at the centre of it all. Crediton Town’s Mayor, Liz Brookes-Hocking, said: “The four days of community events end on 5th June, so it’s exactly the right occasion to celebrate St Boniface alongside the Big Sunday Lunch and the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. We hope it will be the first of many such celebrations that bring everyone together to celebrate our town saint and our Saxon heritage”.
Especially for the day local award-winning artisan baker Chloe Burston-Thomas from Coco’s will be launching “The Boniface Bun” using a secret family recipe.
The many different events are organised by a team from Crediton Town Council, the Crediton Town Team and the Crediton Arts Centre. The events are being supported with grants from Mid Devon District Council’s Love Your Town Centre fund, Devon County Council’s Locality Fund, and the Town Council itself, with many groups and people giving their time voluntarily to create the events.
Jack Robson from Crediton Arts Centre said: “Crediton has a reputation for putting on fantastic community events and I’m sure this will be one of the best. We have a lot to celebrate this year”.
A separate and hard-won National Lottery Awards for All grant to the Town Team will enable many of the town’s famous high street flags to be repaired as well as new ones to be designed and made in time for the Jubilee. Rosemary Stephenson from Crediton Town Team said: “After the difficult last couple of years we’ve had, everyone is getting really excited about having something to celebrate and the hundred flags we’ll be putting up are a great way to say that”.
For More Information
Anyone interested in attending the Jubilee and Devon Day Celebrations are advised to keep their eye on the Crediton In & Around Facebook Page where updates and details of all the events will soon be announced.
Visit our What’s On page for more information about this and other Jubilee events taking place across Mid Devon.