Alderley Edge, The Wizard Inn 1896

Photo ref: 37452

More about this scene

When the Eagle and Child closed as an inn, it occasioned another change in Alderley life. For centuries, the Alderley Wakes had been held there beside the churchyard. This had been a truly village occasion, one which the Stanleys attended but did not control. All the local farming families tried to get back to Alderley for Wakes week in the third week of August. It always started in church, but apparently few people paid much attention to the religious service; they were too busy checking out their neighbours. Afterwards the inn served frumenty and beer and there was dancing on into dark. After the Eagle and Child was closed the Wakes were still held, but up at the Wizard, and it became a teetotal occasion. There was still a religious element, as the day started with a service for the Alderley Oddfellows at St Mary's, after which they paraded up the hill to the Wizard, where there was a mixture of entertainment, including races, donkey rides, balloon ascents, brass bands and teas. After the First World War the date of the Alderley Wakes changed to Easter, but the fun still went on until 1939, with the fair set up in the field opposite the Wizard.