• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
    • First Time Here?
    • Royal Oak
    • Our App
    • Contact
    • Free Anglotopia Mobile and Tablet App
    • Advertise
    • History of Anglotopia
    • Newsletter
    • Disclaimer
    • Press Room
  • Blog
    • Podcast
  • Sections
    • Anglophilia
      • Anglophile 101
      • Anglotopia Long Reads
      • Desktop Wallpapers
      • Anglophile Alerts
      • Anglophile Deals
      • Anglophile Gear
      • Anglophile Zen
      • British Food
    • British TV
      • BBC
      • Downton Abbey
      • Doctor Who News
      • British TV Videos
      • Top Gear
    • British History
      • Great Britons
      • Winston Churchill
      • British Literature
      • British Empire
      • British Military
      • English Language
      • Royal History
      • Shakespeare
    • Royal Family
      • The Queen
      • Prince Harry
      • Prince George
      • Royal Couple – Will & Kate
      • Royal Family
      • Royal History
      • Royal Traditions
    • Reviews
      • Brit DVD Reviews
      • Brit Book Reviews
      • Brit Movie Reviews
      • Brit TV Reviews
      • Brit Music Reviews
      • Attraction Reviews
  • Top British Slang
    • British Slang Archives
    • British Slang Dictionary
    • British English: The Top 50 Most Beautiful British Insults
    • British Slang: Your Guide to British Police Slang for the Telly Watcher
    • British Slang: Tea Time – British Words for Tea and Tea Related Culture
    • British Slang: British Railway Terms
    • ltimate List of Funny British Place Names
  • London
  • Regions
    • South East England
      • Berkshire
      • Buckinghamshire
      • East Sussex
      • Hampshire
      • Isle of Wight
      • Kent
      • Oxfordshire
      • Surrey
      • Sussex
      • West Sussex
    • South West England
      • Cornwall
      • Cotswolds
      • Devon
      • Dorset
      • Gloucestershire
      • Somerset
      • Wiltshire
    • Midlands
      • Bedfordshire
      • Derbyshire
      • Herefordshire
      • Hertfordshire
      • Leicestershire
      • Lincolnshire
      • Northamptonshire
      • Rutland
      • Shropshire
      • Staffordshire
      • Warwickshire
    • East Anglia
      • Norfolk
      • Suffolk
      • Cambridgeshire
      • Essex
    • North East England
      • Yorkshire
      • County Durham
      • Northumberland
      • Tyne and Wear
    • North West England
      • Cheshire
      • Cumbria
      • Lake District
      • Lancashire
      • Liverpool
      • Manchester
    • Scotland
      • Edinburgh
      • Glasgow
    • Wales
      • Cardiff
      • Pembrokeshire
    • Northern Ireland
      • Belfast
    • Islands
      • Channel Islands
      • Jersey
      • Isle of Man
      • Isles of Scilly
  • Travel
    • Tours
      • Top UK Tour Operators
      • Top London Tours
      • Top Day Trips from London
      • Anglophile Recommendations
      • UK Lodging Recommendations
    • Travel Guides
    • Attractions
      • Great British Houses
      • Stately Homes
      • Castles
      • Cathedrals
      • Museums
      • Coast
      • Palaces
      • Restaurants
      • Royal
    • Top 10 Britain
    • Days Out
    • Travel Tips
    • Trip Planning
    • British Airways
    • Hotels
    • Self-catering
    • Bed and Breakfasts
    • National Trust
    • Royal Oak
  • British Shop
    • British Imports
    • Magazine Back Issues
    • Anglotopia Gear
    • Winston Churchill
  • British Forum
  • Our Books
    • Adventures in Anglotopia
    • British Slang Dictionary
    • 101 London Travel Tips
    • 101 Budget Britain Travel Tips – 2nd Edition
    • Anglophile Vignettes
    • Great Britons Book: Top 50 Greatest Brits Who Ever Lived
    • Great Events in British History

Anglotopia.net

The Website for People Who Love Britain - Anglophiles

  • Platinum Jubilee
  • British News
  • History
    • Prehistoric Britain
    • British Legends
    • Roman Britain
    • Anglo-Saxon
    • Norman Britain
    • Medieval Era
    • Plantagenet Era
    • Tudor Era
    • Elizabethan Era
    • Carolinean Era
    • Interregnum Era
    • Jacobean Era
    • Stuart Era
    • Restoration Era
    • Georgian Era
    • Colonial America
    • Edwardian Era
    • Royals
      • The Monarchs
      • Royal Babies
      • Royal Couple – Will & Kate
      • Royal History
      • Royal Traditions
      • Royal Videos
      • Royal Wedding
      • Royal Wedding Trip Diaries
      • The Queen
      • Harry’s Wedding
      • Prince Harry
      • Duke and Duchess of Sussex
    • Regency Era
    • British Empire
    • Victorian Era
    • Interwar Period
    • Winston Churchill
    • Modern Britain
    • Royal History
    • Through the Library
    • Transport History
    • The Monarchs
    • World War I Era
    • World War II
  • Entertainment
    • British TV
      • Doctor Who
      • BBC
      • Downton Abbey
      • Top Gear
      • Brit TV Reviews
      • Acorn Media
      • Britbox
    • British Movies
    • British Music
  • Columns
    • Long Reads
      • Magazine
      • Dreams of Britain
      • Inspiration
      • Great British Art
      • Inspiration Videos
      • Inspirational Places
    • Eating British in America
    • An American Student Abroad
    • A Brit Back Home
    • A Day In the Life…
    • A Church in Wales
    • Through the Lens
    • Through the Library
    • Anglophile Life
    • Laura’s Britain
    • Lost in the Pond
  • Anglophilia
    • Anglophile 101
    • Anglophile Alerts
    • Anglophile Problems
    • Anglophile Gear
    • English Language
    • Anglophile Zen
    • Pictures of England
  • British Heritage
  • Britishness
    • Art
    • British Architecture
    • British Aristocracy
    • British Weather
    • British Cars
    • British Products
    • Brit Knits
    • Brit Crafts
    • Brit Recipes
    • British Food
    • British Christmas
    • Our Trips
      • Anglotopia’s Grand Adventure – Land’s End to John O’Groats
      • Rural Writers Institute Trip
      • Harry’s Wedding
      • Anglotopia Goes to Oxford
      • England Spring 2017 Trip
      • February 2017
      • Spring 2016 Trip
      • London 2016
      • An English Christmas Trip – 2013
      • Training for Hadrian’s Wall – 2014
      • Jubilee 2012 Trip
      • Royal Wedding Trip Diaries
      • Trip to England – July 2010
      • Trip to England 2009
  • British Forum
    • Anglotopia TV
You are here: Home / Travel / Days Out / What’s On Around Britain in January 2020 – Twelfth Night, Chinese New Year, Burns Night, Blenheim Palace, Ballet, Wales, History, and More!

What’s On Around Britain in January 2020 – Twelfth Night, Chinese New Year, Burns Night, Blenheim Palace, Ballet, Wales, History, and More!

January 1, 2020 By Laura Leave a Comment

Daily British News

Sign-up for free daily emails with the latest news about British culture, heritage, and history!

We promise we’ll never spam!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Happy new year! Welcome to 2020! Let’s have a look what’s happening across Britain this month and see what weirdness I’ve managed to find this time.

Twelfth Night

I’ve been to the London Twelfth Night celebration so can recommend the event but there is also a Twelfth Night celebration in Guildford, Surrey, each year. Counting twelve nights on from Christmas Day, the twelfth night is on 6 January. In Guildford, the Pilgrim Morris Men perform a traditional wassail to draw a close to the festive season starting at the Star Inn on Quarry Street from 7.30 pm. They tour the town’s hostelries singing traditional carols, performing the Guildford Mummers Play and generously passing ’round the wassail bowl’ under the auspices of the King of Misrule, who is chosen at the start of proceedings. At each pub, chalked cross marks are made on the beams called apotropaic marks – it’s one of the rituals of the night and the marks are made to bring good luck and to prevent the entrance of evil spirits. I’m told it’s noisy, crowded and lots of fun.

 

Bodmin Wassailing

From noon on 6 January, there is more wassailing in Bodmin, Cornwall. The tradition here dates back to 1624 when local man and town clerk Nicholas Spry provided a wassail cup and the drink to fill it. These days it has become a twelve-hour marathon of song (they have two unique songs) and drink while collecting money for charities. The wassailers are a group of smartly dressed gents attired in top hats who make their way around the town bidding people “wassail” in shops, homes and pubs.

 

Plough Monday

Celebrated on the first Monday after Epiphany (or the first Monday after the Twelfth Night) – the first day back at work after Christmas for farm labourers – Plough Monday harks back to the days when farm labourers had little work to do in the winter months. This year it is on Monday 13 January 2020. (Plough Sunday is the day before and there are Blessing the Plough services across farming counties including at Durham Cathedral.)

The tradition is most well known in the East Midlands and in East Anglia. You can see Molly dancing – the East Anglian form of Morris dancing with blackened face performers. And the labourers would don a disguise with a costume or blacken their faces with soot to not be recognised as they dragged a decorated plough around the larger houses in the village, begging for money. In Rumburgh, Suffolk, dancers perform a display before toasting the plough, singing a Plough Monday song and burning greenery from the musicians’ hats.

In some areas of England, a Straw Bear would be paraded. The Whittlesey Straw Bear Festival in Cambridgeshire (on 17 January 2020) is a direct descendant of the Plough Monday customs.

Image by Jessica Rockeman from Pixabay

 

Chinese New Year

There are events in most major cities but the London Chinese New Year celebration is the largest outside Asia. We have the largest gathering of Chinese lions and dragons in Europe parading along Charing Cross Road and Shaftesbury Avenue. Trafalgar Square has amazing performances on stage plus delicious Chinese food stalls. 25 January is the start of the Year of the Rat and the London celebrations are on Sunday 26 January 2020.

©VisitBritain/Andy Hall

 

Burns Night

2020 is the first time Burns Night, on 25 January, has coincided with Chinese New Year in 76 years. In Edinburgh, Burns & Beyond is a festival of both celebrations with a vast installation of more than 400 Chinese lanterns in St Giles’ Cathedral, a ‘not-so-traditional’ Burns Supper and much more.

So, what is Burn’s Night? Every January Scotland celebrates the birthday of Robert Burns – the national poet of Scotland – with a traditional supper of haggis, neeps and tatties (swede and potatoes) plus a wee dram (shot of Scotch Whisky).

The world’s biggest contemporary Burns celebration is the Big Burns Supper in Dumfries is on from 23 January to 2 February 2020. Dumfries is home to places such as Ellisland Farm (built by Robert Burns as his home in 1788) and The Globe Inn pub (established in 1610, which was regularly frequented by Burns and is home to some fascinating memorabilia). Or head to Alloway in Ayrshire to visit the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum.

 

Blenheim Palace

Former Prime Minister Winston Churchill died on 24 January 1965. He lived at Chartwell
in Westerham, Kent, for over forty years but the National Trust property is closed until March so why not visit the place of his birth?

Churchill was born at Blenheim Palace and this month there are Restoration and Conservation Tours available. From 10 January to 9 February 2020 the Palace is undergoing a program of deep cleaning and conservation. During this six-week period, every part of the Blenheim Palace collection is meticulously cleaned and maintained using a range of methods, both modern and traditional. Visiting for one of these tours means you will be able to see the conservation team in action as the Palace remains open throughout the winter.

Image by Wolfgang Claussen from Pixabay

 

National Trust

2020 is the 125th anniversary of the National Trust. It was founded on 12 January 1895 to care for historic properties, areas of beautiful countryside and to provide access to green spaces for everyone. To mark the anniversary, the organisation is aiming to raise £125,000 to support a number of special projects across the English Riviera properties; Greenway, Coleton Fishacre, Bradley Manor and Compton Castle.

One of the most fascinating chapters of the National Trust’s history was written on the Isle of Wight, at Newton Old Town Hall, by the notorious Ferguson’s Gang. Ferguson’s Gang was formed in 1927 with five core members, all of whom were women. Their aim was to raise awareness of the need to protect rural areas and they supported The National Trust. The Gang raised huge sums to protect and preserve important buildings and land that could otherwise have been destroyed. Their ‘swag’ donations to the National Trust were delivered in strange ways: money inside a fake pineapple; a one-hundred-pound note stuffed inside a cigar; five hundred pounds with a bottle of homemade sloe gin. Their stunts were widely reported in the press and, when they made a national radio appeal for The National Trust, the response was overwhelming. The Gang’s members hid behind pseudonyms such as ‘Sister Agatha’, ‘Bill Stickers’ and the ‘Bludy Beershop’.

Image by mrblackman1 from Pixabay

 

Alice Trail

Lewis Carroll, the author of the Alice in Wonderland stories, was born on 27 January 1832.

Curiouser and curiouser, the charming seaside town of Llandudno in North Wales was a regular holiday haunt for the young Alice Pleasance Liddell (the real Alice in Wonderland) and her family, whose holiday home ‘Penmorfa’ was built on Llandudno’s West Shore. The Liddells were close family friends with Charles Dodgson, who wrote the books under his more famous pen-name, Lewis Carroll.

The town is now home to a well-known Alice Trail where fans can explore its connections with Carroll’s Alice as they are taken from the Hearts Quarter of the town to the Spades Quarter, adjacent to the scenic promenade of the Llandudno’s North Shore, spotting all the White Rabbit commemorative sculptures along the way. The Alice Town Trails apps use augmented reality which fits in perfectly with the spirit of Carroll’s original fantasy novels.

North Shore Promenade in Llandudno, Wales. Credit: PM Photography

 

English National Ballet

2020 marks English National Ballet’s 70th anniversary. Celebrations are taking place throughout the 2019-2020 Season beginning with three specially curated gala performances at the London Coliseum on 17 and 18 January 2020.

The gala performances celebrate the countless dancers, choreographers, artists, musicians, artisans, technicians and audience members who have been part of the English National Ballet family. Showcasing the world-class talent of the entire Company, alongside the future stars of the ballet world from English National Ballet School, the programme includes some of the most important and groundbreaking works that make up English National Ballet’s diverse repertoire.

You can also see ENB’s Le Corsaire at the London Coliseum from 8 to 14 January 2020.

Alison McWhinney in Le Corsaire © Laurent Liotardo

 

Mari Lwyd

The Mari Lwyd is an ancient Welsh wassailing custom which is most closely associated with the village of Llangynwyd. It happens on New Year’s Eve and on the evening of 13 January 2020.

This one does seem a bit bonkers as Mari Lwyd means grey mare. A group with a man under in a white sheet holding a decorated horse-skull on a pole would go from house to house in the village singing impromptu verses in Welsh to the people inside. The residents had to reply in kind or invite in the Mari Lwyd and serve ale and food. Nowadays is all happens at The Corner House Inn.

© R. fiend

 

Katharine of Aragon Festival

The Katharine of Aragon Festival commemorates 29 January 1536, when Henry VIII’s first wife was buried at Peterborough Cathedral after her death in exile at Kimbolton Castle. She had previously been married to Henry’s elder brother Arthur who died young. Henry used this (after they had been married for over 20 years) as an excuse to divorce her as he was desperate for a male heir. He declared their union invalid so he could marry Anne Boleyn which started the Reformation of the Church in England.

Katherine still lies there today and the occasion is marked by a programme of events on a Tudor theme. The Peterborough festival dates this year are 23-26 January 2020.

(Mary Queen of Scots was buried at Peterborough Cathedral after her execution at Fotheringhay in 1587. Her son had her reburied at Westminster Abbey in 1612 after he took the throne as King James I. A flag of Scotland hangs in Peterborough Cathedral where Mary’s tomb used to be.)

Charles I Commemoration

The only king to be publicly executed in Britain, Charles I was beheaded outside Banqueting House on Whitehall in London on 30 January 1649. The anniversary is marked by special prayers and wreath-laying at his statue outside the Banqueting House followed by a Mass inside organised by The Society of King Charles the Martyr.

The English Civil War Society organises an annual parade from The Mall to Whitehall which is held on a Sunday near to 30 January. This year it is on 26 January 2020 from 11 am with an outdoor service at Whitehall around 12.30 pm.

Celtic Connections

Celtic Connections, the UK’s premier celebration of Celtic music in on in Glasgow, Scotland, from 16 January to 2 February 2020. This annual folk, roots and world music festival celebrates Celtic music and its connections to cultures across the globe. It’s the largest annual winter music festival of its kind featuring more than 2,000 artists and 300 events across 20 venues, including concerts, ceilidhs, talks, art exhibitions and workshops.

St Dwynwen’s Day

St Dwynwen’s Day (or ‘Dydd Santes Dwynwen’ in Welsh) is the Welsh version of St Valentine’s Day. Celebrated on 25 January each year, cards and gifts are exchanged and couples enjoy a romantic cwtch (cuddle).

St Dwynwen was a fourth-century Welsh princess who lived in what is now the Brecon Beacons National Park. She was unlucky in love so she became a nun and set up a convent on Llanddwyn Island, a beautiful little spot on Anglesey. Her name means ‘she who leads a blessed life’. She prayed for true lovers to have better luck than she did.

©VisitBritain/Ben Selway
close

Daily British News

Sign-up for free daily emails with the latest news about British culture, heritage, and history!

We promise we’ll never spam!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Share this:

  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pocket
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit

Filed Under: Days Out, Events, Featured, National Trust, Travel, Travel Guides, Travel Tips, Trip Planning, What's On in Britain

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Daily British News

Sign-up for free daily emails with the latest news about British culture, heritage, and history!

We promise we’ll never spam!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

About Laura

Laura Porter writes aboutlondonlaura.com and fits in further freelance writing while maintaining an afternoon tea addiction to rival the Queen's. Laura is @AboutLondon on Twitter, @AboutLondon Laura on Facebook and aboutlondon on Instagram.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

Search our Extensive Archive

Get the Free Anglotopia App

Our Fabulous Advertisers

Free British Weekly Newsletter

Please enter a valid email address
That address is already in use
The security code entered was incorrect
Thanks for signing up!

Recent Discussions on the Anglotopia Forum

  • British Music
  • Box of Delights, anyone?
  • British people of Anglotopia, what do you make of the whole anglophile thing ?
  • Britain in 2022?
  • Why Are You an Anglophile?
  • What's your favorite British slang word or phrase?
  • Let's talk about British Food! What's your favorite?
  • Homesickness strikes
  • What did British stuff did you get for Christmas?
  • Liking someone's reply

Recent Posts

Anglotopia Store Alert: Now Stocking Cumbrian and Devon Teas!

Downton Abbey: A New Era Review – Where Downton Perhaps Becomes A Little Too Self-Aware

Ancient stone circle unearthed in Cornwall

Crafters pick up crochet hooks to decorate post boxes ahead of Queen’s Jubilee

Princess Diana’s sparkling Spencer Tiara on show for Jubilee jewels display at Sotheby’s

Records and memorabilia of late DJ John Peel will be auctioned off next month

John Lydon makes peace with the Queen

More than 70 aircraft to take part in six-minute Platinum Jubilee flypast

City of Long Beach Issues Update on the Queen Mary Restoration

Operation Mincemeat is the ultimate dad movie for spring 2022 (other than Top Gun: Maverick)

Best Posts on Anglotopia

  • Top 100 British Slang Words and Phrases
  • Top 50 Most Beautiful British Insults
  • Ultimate List of Funny British Place Names
  • Top 16 Best Castles in England
  • Our Love Affair with Shaftesbury Dorset Explained
  • British Stores in the USA
  • 101 Free Things to do in London
  • Top British Comedies of All Time
  • Top 11 Stately Homes in England
  • The Top 12 Castles in Scotland
  • Top Ten British Chick Flicks
  • Top 10 Anglophile Movies
  • Top 13 Best Castles in Wales
  • Brit Telly 101: Understanding British Police Ranks
  • Brit Slang: British Slang in the Bedroom
  • Finding Downton: Our Journey to Highclere Castle
  • Titanic: 10 Famous People Who Died On The Titanic
  • 33 British Slang Words and Phrases You’ll Want to Start Using Regularly Today Because They’re Awesome
  • Top 10 Classic British Motorcycles
  • Top Ten of the Best British Sweets

British Long Reads

Caroline of Brunswick: The Tabloid Princess of the Regency Era

A Church in Wales Spring 2022 Update

Great British Houses: Rainham Hall National Trust

Duke of Edinburgh: A look at his life – No-nonsense prince was Queen’s ‘strength and stay’ – Obituary – Long-read

Guest Post: Slow Chilterns – Exploring The Chilterns

More From the Print Magazine

Anglotopia’s Top Categories

  • British Slang Archives
  • Royal Family
  • Great Events in British History
  • Great British Houses
  • Great British Icons
  • The Monarchs
  • British Slang
  • A Day In the Life…
  • Long-form British Articles
  • British TV
  • British Culture
  • Our Travels in Britain
[adrotate group="1"]

Great British Houses

Great British Houses: Rainham Hall National Trust

More Great Houses

Great Britons

New Anglotopia Book! Great Britons – The Top 50 Greatest Brits Who Ever Lived Is Officially Released Today!

More Great Britons

Photos of Britain

In Pictures: Britons head to the coast on sun-kissed Weekend

See More Photos of Britain

Inspirational Videos

Something Special For All Of You: Spend 1 Hour on Gold Hill in Shaftesbury, Dorset Right Now In Beautiful 4K Video

Click to View More Videos

Great British Art

British Art: My Favorite Paintings by British Landscape John Constable

See More Great British Art

Footer

About Us

Anglotopia was founded by Jonathan and Jackie Thomas in 2007 in a closet in Chicago. Anglotopia is for people who love Britain - whether it's British TV, Culture, History or Travel - we cover it all. Join us as we explore Britain and everything it has to offer!

Contact Us!

Interested in advertising on the world's largest website dedicated to all things Britain? Or maybe you have a story for us or would like to work together. We want to hear from you!

Reach Us At: E-mail: info@anglotopia.net

Free British Weekly Newsletter

Please enter a valid email address
That address is already in use
The security code entered was incorrect
Thanks for signing up!

As Seen On or In:

Link Partners

  • Gold Hill Shaftesbury Live HD Webcam
  • Irishtopia.net
  • SEO Backlinks
  • Travel Blog

Top Anglotopia Categories

  • British Slang Archives
  • Royal Family
  • Great Events in British History
  • Great British Houses
  • Great British Icons
  • The Monarchs
  • British Slang
  • A Day In the Life…
  • Long-form British Articles
  • British TV
  • British Culture
  • Our Travels in Britain

Copyright © 2022 Anglotopia, LLC · Website Developed by Anglotopia, LLC · Log in

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.