A huge crowd and fabulous Boxing Day weather ensured a fantastic atmosphere at the traditional Boxing Day tug of war over the River Nidd in Knaresborough.

Teams representing the Half Moon Free House and the neighbouring Mother Shipton Inn take part in the festive fun annually at Low Bridge. Lining up on opposite river banks, they try to pull each other towards the water’s edge.

Town crier Mark Hunter provided commentary from the bridge and besides the two pubs, Rooster’s Brewing Co kept the ale flowing with an outdoor bar.

The Mother Shipton women’s team — featuring members of Harrogate Railway FC — started the day’s sport by winning 2-1. Here we see the Half Moon team sliding towards the river in the opening pull.

The Mother Shipton men’s team then overcame the Half Moon team by the same margin, after a gargantuan second pull that lasted several minutes.

Every pull was won by the team based on the Mother Shipton side.

Knaresborough Lions provided traffic management on a day that also generated funds for Frank’s Fund, a charity set up by the Ashton family in 2019 following the death of their 14-year-old son, Frank, to Ewing sarcoma, a form of bone cancer.

Here are some photos from the day.

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The victorious Mother Shipton team.

Crowds on the river bank.

Town crier Mark Hunter calls the action.

Competition for the best viewing spots was fierce.

The weather was glorious.

The view towards Mother Shipton Inn.

The Rooster’s outside bar.

Town crier Mark Hunter kept the crowd informed.

Hundreds of people lined the banks of the Nidd and Low Bridge.

Pub pride will be at stake tomorrow when Knaresborough’s annual tug of war match over the River Nidd takes place.

The festive fun and frivolity sees teams from the neighbouring Half Moon and Mother Shipton Inn take the strain on either side of the river and try to pull each other towards the water’s edge.

Nobody actually enters the Nidd these days but the sight of locals holding a specially made long rope and trying to avoid sliding down a muddy bank is something to behold, and attracts a huge crowd of up to 1,000 people.

Half Moon landlord Tom Clarkson, who is organising the event, said the Knaresborough town crier would be introducing the event and Knaresborough Lions would marshal the crowds that gather in the narrow area.

The event will also raise money for Frank’s Fund, a charity set up by the Ashton family in 2019 following the death of their 14-year-old son, Frank, to Ewing sarcoma, a form of bone cancer.

Last year’s tug of war — the first after covid — was won by default by the Half Moon, which entered teams on both sides of the river, but Mr Clarkson said he hoped the two pubs would both provide men’s and women’s teams this year.

Drinks will be available from 11am and there will be an outside bar run by local brewery Roosters.

The action gets underway beneath Low Bridge at high noon and will feature best of three pulls between separate men’s and women’s teams.

Mr Clarkson said:

“It’s a cracking day that we hope will raise a lot of money for Frank’s Fund.”

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Hampsthwaite claimed bragging rights over Birstwith for the rest of the year after winning the annual New Year’s Day tug of war contest.

Men’s and women’s teams from the Joiners Arms in Hampsthwaite and the Station Hotel in Birstwith did battle at Hampsthwaite cricket field yesterday in front of a large crowd of spectators.

The men’s and women’s teams from Hampsthwaite both came out top in the best-of-three pulls.

The teams then put aside their rivalries to enjoy pie and peas at the Joiners Arms and take part in a raffle to raise money for Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

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All the photos below were taken by Edward Lee.

Village pride will be at stake today when teams from Hampsthwaite and Birstwith do battle in their traditional New Year’s Day tug of war showdown.

Men’s and women’s teams from the Joiners Arms in Hampsthwaite and the Station Hotel in Birstwith will face-off at Hampsthwaite cricket field at 1pm.

Both sexes will compete over the best of three pulls before heading to the Joiners Arms for pie and peas.

There will also be a raffle in aid of Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

Joiners Arms landlord Tony Crammage, aided by Robin Hardcastle, has been organising the Hampsthwaite men’s team while Nicola Binns is getting together the female team. Amy Howard is overseeing the teams in Birstwith.

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Joiners Arms landlady Becky Cranage explained the tug of war tradition dated back many years, with Hampsthwaite’s finest formerly taking on a team from RAF Menwith Hill.

But in recent years it has evolved into a battle of neighbouring Nidderdale villages, with Hampsthwaite emerging victorious last year.

Some of last year’s competitors.

Up to 1,000 people are expected to congregate on the banks of the River Nidd in Knaresborough today for one of the country’s more curious Boxing Day traditions.

Teams representing the Half Moon free house and the nearby Mother Shipton Inn will take the strain in a tug of war tussle with a difference.

The teams will face-off on either side of the Nidd and attempt to pull each other towards the water’s edge.

Teams no longer get yanked into the river, but the sight of men and women heaving a huge rope over a major waterway is quite a sight — and one that has been missed lately due to covid.

Tom Clarkson, organiser and landlord of the Half Moon, summed up the fun:

“It lasts about an hour-and-a-half and it’s absolute mental, wonderful carnage.”

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Men’s and women’s teams of eight will take part in best-of-three jousts to claim bragging rights for a year.

Mother Shipton Inn came out on top last time.

Crowds are expected to start gathering around the low bridge from about 11.15am before the action gets underway at noon.

Competitors and fans will then put aside their differences to retire to the two pubs. A collection will take place on the day for the bone cancer charity Frank’s Fund.

The organisers of the annual News Year’s Day Hampsthwaite vs Birstwith tug of war competition have said they’re keeping their fingers crossed it will go ahead in a fortnight’s time.

The tradition dates back to the 1980s, but about eight years ago it became a competition between two pubs in the neighbouring villages; The Joiners Arms in Hampsthwaite and The Station Hotel in Birstwith.

Hundreds of people often watch the competition at Hampsthwaite cricket ground before heading to The Joiners Arms.

The event had to be cancelled this year due to coronavirus restrictions. Knaresborough’s Boxing Day tug of war has been cancelled this year but organisers have said they’re hopeful the event will be able to take place on the first day of next year.

Rebecca Cranage, the owner of Joiners Arms, said:

“We thought we’d definitely be OK for this year, we are just hoping it can still go ahead. We’ll just have to wait and see.”

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Ms Cranage has lived in the village for 20 years and, like many villagers, has fond memories of watching the event.

It has evolved over the years after starting as a Brits vs Americans competition featuring men from the RAF Menwith Hill base.

The upcoming event is due to include men’s and women’s teams, with 10 people on each end of the rope pulling for victory.

There will also be a raffle to raise funds for Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

The annual Boxing Day tug of war over the River Nidd in Knaresborough has been cancelled due to growing covid uncertainty.

The festive tradition attracts as many as 1,000 spectators to the banks of the Nidd and the bridge between the Half Moon and Mother Shipton’s Inn to watch teams from the two pubs compete.

But the Half Moon has announced on its Facebook page that the event will not take place because it does not want to “risk people’s health or the NHS’s ability to cope”.

It said:

“Sorry everyone but we’ve taken the decision today to cancel the tug of war event this year. The covid case numbers etc are all going the wrong way to make the event safe. Even though it’s outdoors, spectators are literally shoulder to shoulder over the bridge and on the river banks.

“We also can’t restrict the numbers of people who might attend to watch it so it would be impossible to properly manage/check NHS covid passes/ask people to put masks on etc.

“We are gutted as it’s such a fun event, a wonderful Knaresborough tradition and great for the community and our charities but hopefully we’ll get to do it next year.”

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Five possible cases of the Omicron variant have been found in the Harrogate district.

With the Prime Minister warning of a “tidal wave” of Omicron cases set to spread across the UK, it remains to be seen how many other events in the district are cancelled in the weeks ahead.