Celebrating May Day in Oxford

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It’s 5am and the sky has just begun to turn from inky black into hazy blue.  The birds twitter from their unseen perches and the air seems hushed in the light from the streetlamps. Yet as you approach Oxford City Center, groups of revelers appear in twos and threes all heading toward Magdalen Bridge as if drawn by an unseen force. All at once you find yourself in the midst of a crowd on High Street and it feels like the whole world must be awake and flocking to the bridge.  It’s May Day and everyone is celebrating—some a little too drunk already, and others merely drunk on the excitement and lack of sleep. May Day.  If you hear these words and immediately think of disasters and international distress signals, then it’s clear you need to find new associations by experiencing this holiday for yourself.  May Day the holiday, unlike mayday the distress signal, is usually not in the least related to disasters (unless of course you happen to be one of the unfortunate and unthinking souls who injured themselves by jumping into the river during the revelries). Regardless, spending May Day in Oxford with the Morris dancers and the city of dreaming spires is truly an exciting and special experience. May Day Morris dancers on Broad Street, Oxford

What is May Day in Oxford?

May Day or May Morning is a traditional holiday to celebrate the coming of spring with singing, dancing, and revelry. While people celebrate it across the world, Oxford’s celebrations are especially animated and memorable. All the best events happen before 8am, so some Oxonians choose to stay up all night on the last day of April in order to greet the 1st of May when it first shows its smiling face.  But if you would rather have at least a couple hours of sleep, then just make sure you show up early enough to get a good view of Magdalen Tower for the 6am festivities.

May Morning Festivities

At 6am, crowds of people assemble on the bridge and street below the Magdalen tower to hear the Magdalen College Choir sing the Hymnus Eucharisticus.  As soon as 6am strikes, the crowd holds its collective breath to hear the first notes ring out from the tower. [one_half padding=”0 17px 0 0″][/one_half] [one_half_last padding=”5px 0 0 3px”] [/one_half_last] The Hymnus Eucharisticus was composed in the 17th century by Benjamin Rogers, a Fellow of Magdalen, and has been sung every year from the tower on May Morning.  The ethereal sound reverberates throughout the city and all seems calm during the few minutes of exquisite singing. After the singing concludes, the bells of Magdalen Tower ring out for 20 minutes to herald the arrival of spring.  Once these formal aspects of May Day are concluded, be sure to head back toward the city center to continue the fun with singing and dancing (and grabbing breakfast from one of the many open cafes or pubs).

Morris Dancing on May Morning

After the singing, you’ll soon spot groups of Morris dancers surge into the city with their matching outfits and bells strapped to their shins.  They make the rounds of all the popular places and take turns dancing in the streets. Morris dance is a type of English folk dance that relies on rhythmic stepping and choreographed figures by a group, usually accompanied by folk music.  Sometimes Morris dancers employ sticks or handkerchiefs in their movements to add a rhythmic element or flourish to the dance.  If you are interested in seeing such displays (and indeed, you can hardly avoid them on May Day), then Radcliffe Square, Catte Street, and Broad Street are the best places to go after leaving Magdalen.
Hertford Bridge, aka the "Bridge of Sighs," with Morris dancers and crowds
Hertford Bridge, aka the “Bridge of Sighs,” is an excellent place to spot Morris dancers

Visiting Oxford for May Morning

Although getting up so early in the morning might be difficult if you aren’t a morning person, celebrating May Day in the city of dreaming spires is worth the early wake up call and the effort to roll out of bed.  And if you are a morning person with a peppy spirit, consider dressing up to celebrate spring—one person I saw even dressed as a very leafy tree, so the sky’s the limit on what you can wear. With everyone excited over this holiday and Oxford’s traditions, you are sure to quickly be caught up in the whirl of events and commotion.  So wake up, go outside, and have fun celebrating the (hopefully) warmer weather with the rest of Oxford—you won’t regret it!

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May Day in Oxford

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