Join the pudding wars

The 12th World Black Pudding Throwing Championships is being held outside The Oaks pub, on Bridge Street, from 11am on Sunday.

Competitors stand at the ‘Golden Grid’ and hurl three regulation Bury black puddings at a stack of Yorkshire puddings balanced on a 20ft-high platform.

The ‘golden grid’ is transported to Ramsbottom on a steam-hauled train, and then laid down to the accompaniment of Scottish bagpipes.

The puddings each weigh 170 grams and are wrapped in pantyhose, to prevent them from disintegrating when thrown.

The winner is the competitor who dislodges the most Yorkshires.

The crown was won last year by first-time competitor Alan Cunliffe, 65, from Bury, who knocked six Yorkshire puddings off the platform with his very first throw.

The event attracts competitors from all over the world, and several hundred people usually take part.

But anyone can have a go, with the £1 entry fee buying three underarm throws.

Other amusements on the day include a children’s championship and Pudstock, a one-day music festival.

And for those who would rather stick to eating, black puddings will be on sale.

Legend has it that Lancastrians and Yorkists resorted to fighting with foodstuffs during the 15th century Wars of the Roses when their ammunition ran out.

The championships were first held in Stubbins, Lancashire, in August 2002, as part of the activities surrounding the Commonwealth Games in Manchester.