Shared by Hemingford Grey and Hemingford Abbots, the Hemingfords’ Regatta is the oldest village rowing regatta in the country.

The Regatta is held on the River Great Ouse and comprises a day of racing in double and single coxed pleasure rowing boats, canoes and punts. The entry is largely restricted to the villagers, and there are races for children, adults and veterans. For five weeks prior to the Regatta, the rowing boats which are owned by the Regatta are available each evening for practice and training. Children are given the opportunity to learn how to row and cox.

The Regatta day is held on the second Saturday in July. It is a very popular village event for both spectators and participants, (good weather makes it even more popular). There is a short break in the afternoon for tea when a Tug-of-War between teams from the two village pubs – The Axe and Compass and The Cock - takes place across the river. The finals of each event are held in the late afternoon, and early evening, after more than 160 races, the Regatta ends and the prize-giving takes place.

In 2001, the regatta’s centenary year, the history of the Regatta was published ‘A Story of Village Rowing’ by Bridget Flanagan.

The Regatta was founded by the Vicar of Hemingford Grey, the Rev.Byrom Holland, and his friend the artist Walter Dendy Sadler. Between them they gathered the support of the influential families in both the Hemingford villages to donate trophies, lend their boats and use their expertise to set up a Regatta on August Bank Holiday Monday so that everyone could enjoy friendly competition on the river.

The Regatta was an instant success and was so well-loved that it has continued uninterrupted (except for the war years) for over a hundred years. Rev Holland donated a pair of silver oars,‘The Vicar’s Sculls’, as the trophy for a men’s double sculling race which would end at Hemingford Grey Church when the Church bells would ring and coloured rockets be fired from the Church tower. Today this is traditionally the last race of the day.

The book recounts all the stories of this unique Regatta, described by Neil Wigglesworth in ‘The Social History of English Rowing’ as the sole remaining example of the Edwardian ‘garden- party’- style regatta. – Decorated boats, Lyons Corner House Nippies, Three men in a Boat, and A Sturgeon caught in the river.

There are 120 pages with over 100 pictures. All the proceeds go towards Regatta funds. If you would like a copy, please contact the author at: 68 Common Lane, Hemingford Abbots, Huntingdon, Cambs, PE28 9AW