The Creepy Kettlewell Scarecrow Festival
The English village of Kettlewell is home to a rather unique festival. In fact, if you know of any other scarecrow festival festival in the world, we would like you to leave a note in the comments.
As far as we know, this is the only one.
Every August since 1994 the village is overrun by strange (and somewhat creepy) straw men that suddenly appear in the yards of local residents, on rooftops, and in any other little nooks and crannies deemed suitable.
The traditional festival began in 1994 as a fundraiser to raise money for the tiny hamlets and homesteads in the area.
However, the success of the festival and the fact it caught the imagination of the locals who take part every year with increased enthusiasm, means the annual event has gone from strength to strength. In 2015 over 100 scarecrows were created by the people of Kettlewell.
During the nine-day celebration, you will find scarecrows dressed in everything from farm clothes to wedding dresses. In fact in a bid to outdo their neighbours, citizens are constantly raising the bar, on the bizarre, when it comes to the various mis-en-scenes they set up for their creations.
While the thought of a whole village being overrun by dead-eyed scarecrows is a little creepy, it hasn’t deterred the thousands of visitors who flock to Kettlewell each August to enjoy the festival.
So if you find yourself in the Yorkshire countryside near Kettlewell next summer, be sure to check it out.
