![4,000 sides of bacon in cold cellar](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/4%2C000_sides_of_bacon_in_cold_cellar.jpg)
The awarding of a
flitch of bacon to married couples who can swear to not having regretted their marriage for a year and a day is an old tradition, the remnants of which still survive in some pockets in England. The tradition was maintained at
Wychnor Hall
Wychnor Hall (or Wychnor Park, ) is Grade II Listed early 18th-century country house near Burton on Trent, Staffordshire, formerly owned by the Levett Family. The hall has been converted to a Country Club.
History
Wychnor takes its name from ...
in
Staffordshire until at least the eighteenth century, but now the flitch required to be held remains only as a carving over the fireplace. At
Little Dunmow
Little Dunmow is a village situated in rural Essex, England, in the vale of the River Chelmer about east-southeast of the town of Great Dunmow. It can be reached from the Dunmow South exit of the A120 by following the road towards Braintree (B ...
in Essex a similar ceremony also survived into the eighteenth century. The tradition can be traced back to at least the fourteenth century at both sites and the Dunmow flitch is referred to in
Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for '' The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...
. The awarding of a flitch at both sites seems to have been an exceedingly rare event.
The Dunmow tradition was revived in Victorian times, largely inspired by a book (''The Flitch of Bacon'') by
William Harrison Ainsworth
William Harrison Ainsworth (4 February 18053 January 1882) was an English historical novelist born at King Street in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him. While completing his legal studies in ...
. Flitch trials are still held in modern times at
Great Dunmow
Great Dunmow is a historic market town and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. It is situated on the north of the A120 road, approximately midway between Bishop's Stortford and Braintree, five miles east of London Stans ...
. A
counsel is employed to
cross-examine
In law, cross-examination is the interrogation of a witness called by one's opponent. It is preceded by direct examination (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, South Africa, India and Pakistan known as examination-in-chief) and ...
the nominated couples and attempt to show they are undeserving of the award.
There is evidence that the flitch of bacon tradition existed outside Britain in mainland Europe and some would push its origins back as far as Saxon times. Historian
Hélène Adeline Guerber associates the origins of the flitch of bacon ceremony with the
Yule
Yule, actually Yuletide ("Yule time") is a festival observed by the historical Germanic peoples, later undergoing Christianised reformulation resulting in the now better-known Christmastide. The earliest references to Yule are by way of indi ...
feast of
Norse tradition in which boar meat is eaten in honour of the god
Freyr
Freyr (Old Norse: 'Lord'), sometimes anglicized as Frey, is a widely attested god in Norse mythology, associated with kingship, fertility, peace, and weather. Freyr, sometimes referred to as Yngvi-Freyr, was especially associated with Sweden an ...
.
Whichnoure
![Wychnor Park1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Wychnor_Park1.jpg)
The manor of Whichnoure (now
Wychnor Hall
Wychnor Hall (or Wychnor Park, ) is Grade II Listed early 18th-century country house near Burton on Trent, Staffordshire, formerly owned by the Levett Family. The hall has been converted to a Country Club.
History
Wychnor takes its name from ...
) near
Lichfield
Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...
,
Staffordshire was granted to Sir Philip de Somerville in the 10th year of the reign of
Edward III (1336) from the
Earl of Lancaster
The title of Earl of Lancaster was created in the Peerage of England in 1267. It was succeeded by the title Duke of Lancaster in 1351, which expired in 1361. (The most recent creation of the ducal title merged with the Crown in 1413.)
King Henry ...
for a small fee but also on condition that he kept ready "arrayed at all times of the year but Lent, one bacon-flyke hanging in his hall at Whichnoure, to be given to every man or woman who demanded it a year and a day after the marriage, upon their swearing they would not have changed for none other".
The couple are required to produce two of their neighbours to witness that the oath is true. The oath that was to be sworn by the couple reads,
Hear ye, Sir Philip de Somervile, lord of Whichenoure, maintainer and giver of this Bacon, that I, (''husband''), syth I wedded (''wife''), my wyfe, and syth I had her in my kepyng and at wylle, by a Yere and a Day after our Marryage, I would not have changed for none other, farer ne fowler, richer ne powrer, ne for none other descended of gretter lynage, sleeping ne waking, at noo time; and if the said (''wife'') were sole, and I sole, I would take her to be my wyfe before all the wymen of the worlde, of what condytions soevere they be, good or evyle, as helpe me God, and his Seyntys, and this flesh, and all fleshes.
The winning couple are escorted away in a grand ceremony with "trompets, tabourets, and other manoir of mynstralcie". Although this is a valuable prize, it does not seem to have been claimed very often.
Horace Walpole, who visited Whichnoure in 1760, reported that the flitch had not been claimed for thirty years and that a real flitch of bacon was no longer kept ready at the manor. A replacement, carved in wood, was now displayed over the mantle of the fireplace in the main hall, presumably in order to continue to meet the conditions of the original land grant.
Walpole was quite taken by this tradition and mentions it in several letters to his friends. In a letter to the Countess of Ailesbury (Lady Caroline Campbell, daughter of
John Campbell, 4th Duke of Argyll
General John Campbell, 4th Duke of Argyll KT PC (c. 1693 – 9 November 1770), was a British Army officer and Scottish Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1713 and 1761. From 1729 to 1761 he was known as John Campbell of ...
and widow of
Charles Bruce, 4th Earl of Elgin and 3rd Earl of Ailesbury but by this stage married to Hon. H. S. Conway), Walpole with
tongue firmly in cheek berates her for not having come to Whichnoure to claim the flitch: "Are you not ashamed, Madam, never to have put in your claim? It is above a year and a day that you have been married, and I never once heard either of you mention a journey to Whichnoure." Describing the location and explaining why the flitch no longer gets claimed, he writes "... it is a little paradise, and the more like an antique one, as, by all I have said, the married couples seem to be driven out of it." Walpole concludes, "If you love a prospect, or bacon, you will certainly come hither."
An anonymous humorous piece appeared in
Joseph Addison
Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 June 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richar ...
's ''
Spectator'' in 1714 purporting to explain the rarity of the flitch being awarded in terms of the poor quality of the applicants. The writer claims that the source is the ''Register of Whichenovre-hall'' but the truth is that the piece is almost certainly entirely fictitious. The first couple to claim, according to this account, were at first successful, but then had the flitch taken away from them after they began to argue about how it should be dressed. Another couple failed when the husband, who had only reluctantly attended, had his ears boxed by his wife during the questioning. A couple who applied after only their honeymoon had finished passed the questioning but since insufficient time had elapsed were awarded just one
rasher
Rasher or Rashers may refer to:
* Rasher (artist), an Irish figurative artist
* Rasher (comics), a British comic strip
* Rasher, a slice of bacon, in the United Kingdom and Ireland
* Rasher, a recurring character in the TV series ''Blood Drive ...
. One of only two couples to be successful in the first century of the tradition was a ship's captain and his wife who had not actually seen one another for over a year since their marriage.
As well as to married couples, a flitch of bacon was also given at Whichnoure to men in the religious profession one year and a day following their retirement.
[Brand, p.180.]
Dunmow
![Flitch of bacon1905](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Flitch_of_bacon1905.png)
A rather better-known example of the awarding of a flitch of bacon to married couples occurred at
Little Dunmow Priory
Little Dunmow Priory in Little Dunmow was an Augustinian priory in Essex, England. The priory was founded as a church by Juga de Baynard in 1104, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and consecrated by Maurice, bishop of London. Juga was the wid ...
in
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...
. It is generally held to have been instituted by the family of
Robert Fitzwalter
Robert FitzwalterAlso spelled Fitzwater, FitzWalter, fitzWalter, etc. (died 9 December 1235) was one of the leaders of the baronial opposition against King John, and one of the twenty-five sureties of ''Magna Carta''. He was feudal baron of Lit ...
in the 13th century. According to Rev.
W. W. Skeat, in his notes to the fourteenth-century religious poem ''
Piers Plowman'' by
William Langland
William Langland (; la, Willielmus de Langland; 1332 – c. 1386) is the presumed author of a work of Middle English alliterative verse generally known as ''Piers Plowman'', an allegory with a complex variety of religious themes. The poem tr ...
,
In the present passage we have the earliest known allusion to the singular custom known as that of "the Dunmow flitch of Bacon." The custom was—"that if any pair could, after a twelvemonth of matrimony, come forward, and make oath at Dunmow o. Essex
O is the fifteenth letter of the modern Latin alphabet.
O may also refer to:
Letters
* Օ օ, (Unicode: U+0555, U+0585) a letter in the Armenian alphabet
* Ο ο, Omicron, (Greek), a letter in the Greek alphabet
* O (Cyrillic), a letter of the ...
that, during the whole time, they had never had a quarrel, never regretted their marriage, and, if again open to an engagement, would make exactly that they had made, they should be rewarded with a flitch of Bacon."
It is referred to in the Prologue to the
Wife of Bath's Tale
"The Wife of Bath's Tale" ( enm, The Tale of the Wyf of Bathe) is among the best-known of Geoffrey Chaucer's ''Canterbury Tales''. It provides insight into the role of women in the Late Middle Ages and was probably of interest to Chaucer himsel ...
by
Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1343–1400), in a way that makes clear the reference would already be well known to the reader. It continued to be awarded until the middle of the 18th century, the last successful claim being made on 20 June 1751. The ceremony of this last flitch award was recorded by the artist
David Ogborne
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
who was present at the time to make sketches and, later, engravings. His images were later used as source material by
William Harrison Ainsworth
William Harrison Ainsworth (4 February 18053 January 1882) was an English historical novelist born at King Street in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him. While completing his legal studies in ...
for his novel, ''The Flitch of Bacon''.
[Ainsworth, p.viii][Brand, p.178.] Ainsworth's 1854 novel proved so popular that it revived the custom which has continued in one form or another down to the present day and is now held every leap year.
[''The history of the Dunmow flitch trials'']
from the Dunmow Flitch Trials official site.
The oath to be taken was very similar to the one at Whichnoure, that "neither of them in a year and a day, neither sleeping or waking, repented of their marriage".
[ The couple are required to kneel on sharp stones in the churchyard while taking the oath and a verse was chanted:][
]
You shall swear by custom of confession,
That you ne'er made nuptial transgression;
Nor, since you were married man and wife,
By household brawls, or contentious strife,
Or otherwise at bed or board,
Offended each other in deed or in word,
Or since the parish clerk said, Amen,
Wished yourselves unmarried again,
Or in twelvemonth and a day,
Repented in thought any way,
But continue true in thought and desire,
As when you joined hands in holy quire.
If to these conditions without all fear,
Of your own accord you will freely swear,
A whole gammon of bacon you shall receive,
And bear it hence with love and good leave:
For this is our custom at Dunmow well known,
Tho' the pleasure be ours, the bacon's your own.[Brand, p.177.]
Following the taking of the oath, the couple are then paraded around the town with their bacon in a noisy ceremony, much as at Whichnoure.[
The historical Dunmow flitch is known to have been successfully claimed only a total of six times, although there may have been more that are unknown (among the possible ones there are ]Montagu Burgoyne
Montagu Burgoyne (19 July 1750 – 6 March 1836) was a British politician and writer.
Life
Burgoyne was a younger son of Sir Roger Burgoyne, 6th Baronet (1710–1780) of Burgoyne of Sutton, Bedfordshire. He was a member of Trinity Hall, Camb ...
and his wife Elizabeth). Three are known prior to the dissolution of the monasteries from the records of the house of Sir Richard St George, and a further three awards are known from the records of the manor court
The manorial courts were the lowest courts of law in England during the feudal period. They had a civil jurisdiction limited both in subject matter and geography. They dealt with matters over which the lord of the manor had jurisdiction, primaril ...
at Dunmow now in the British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
.[Percy, p.177.] There was a long gap after the dissolution, but the tradition was revived by Sir Thomas May in 1701 when he became the owner of the Priory.[Monger, p.109.]
There was an attempt made to claim the flitch on 12 June 1772 by John and Susan Gilder. The couple had given due notice of their claim and were accompanied by a large crowd of onlookers. However, the lord of the manor had ordered that the ceremony should not take place, and the gates of the Priory were nailed shut to prevent it. By 1809 the tradition was definitely abolished.[Brand, pp.179-180.] A further attempt to claim the flitch was made in 1832 by Josiah Vine, a retired cheesemaker, who travelled with his wife from Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...
to make his claim. He too was refused a trial by a very unsympathetic Steward of Little Dunmow
Little Dunmow is a village situated in rural Essex, England, in the vale of the River Chelmer about east-southeast of the town of Great Dunmow. It can be reached from the Dunmow South exit of the A120 by following the road towards Braintree (B ...
.[ '']John Bull
John Bull is a national personification of the United Kingdom in general and England in particular, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter- ...
'' on 8 October 1837 reported that it had been revived by the Saffron Walden
Saffron Walden is a market town in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England, north of Bishop's Stortford, south of Cambridge and north of London. It retains a rural appearance and some buildings of the medieval period. The population was 15, ...
and Dunmow Agricultural Society.[ Apparently however, this flitch was merely distributed at the annual society dinner. In 1851 a couple from ]Felstead
Felsted (sometimes spelt Felstead) is a village and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. The civil parish includes the hamlets of Bannister Green, Bartholomew Green, Causeway End, Coblers Green, Cock Green, Frenches Gree ...
were also refused a trial at the Priory, but obtained a flitch from the people of nearby Great Dunmow
Great Dunmow is a historic market town and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. It is situated on the north of the A120 road, approximately midway between Bishop's Stortford and Braintree, five miles east of London Stans ...
who felt that they deserved it.
Modern flitch trials
The flitch trials were revived in the Victorian era
In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
after the publication of Ainsworth's novel in 1854 which proved to be tremendously popular. Ainsworth aided the reinstitution by himself donating two flitches for the first of the revived ceremonies in 1855. They have been held ever since in one form or another except for a gap caused by the World Wars. The first ceremony after World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
was held in 1949, despite rationing still being in force.[Monger, p.110.] The modern trials are held every fourth year on leap years; the next one due in 2020, was postponed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. The event is organised by the Dunmow Flitch Trials Committee who employ a counsel to cross-examine the applicants in an attempt to save the bacon for the sponsors who donated it. The trial is decided by a jury.[
When first revived the original stones on which the couple knelt had been removed and the chair on which they were carried if successful is kept permanently in ]Little Dunmow Priory
Little Dunmow Priory in Little Dunmow was an Augustinian priory in Essex, England. The priory was founded as a church by Juga de Baynard in 1104, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and consecrated by Maurice, bishop of London. Juga was the wid ...
, also known as St Mary's Church. However, replacements for both of these have been provided for the modern ceremony. The modern trials are held in the town of Great Dunmow
Great Dunmow is a historic market town and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. It is situated on the north of the A120 road, approximately midway between Bishop's Stortford and Braintree, five miles east of London Stans ...
rather than the location of the original custom at Little Dunmow, a smaller nearby village.[
Dunmow claims to be the only location to have continued the ''flitch of bacon'' custom into the 21st century.][
]
Older traditions
Although the flitch ceremony at Dunmow is generally held to have originated with the Fitzwalters in the 13th century there are some who would date it to earlier Norman or Saxon times,[ one suggested date being 1104, the founding of the Little Dunmow Priory.] This is partly because the flitch of Dunmow seems to have already been common knowledge in very early works such as the prologue to Chaucer's "Wife of Bath
"The Wife of Bath's Tale" ( enm, The Tale of the Wyf of Bathe) is among the best-known of Geoffrey Chaucer's ''Canterbury Tales''. It provides insight into the role of women in the Late Middle Ages and was probably of interest to Chaucer himse ...
" and also in the '' Visions of Pierce Plowman'' by William Langland
William Langland (; la, Willielmus de Langland; 1332 – c. 1386) is the presumed author of a work of Middle English alliterative verse generally known as ''Piers Plowman'', an allegory with a complex variety of religious themes. The poem tr ...
. Some would also read passages in the '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' as alluding to the Dunmow flitch.[
It is possible that the ''flitch of bacon'' custom was at one time quite widespread. There was a flitch of bacon tradition at the Abbey of St ]Melaine
Saint Melaine (Latin: Melanius or Mellanus; Cornish: Melan; Welsh: Mellon) was a 6th-century Bishop of Rennes in Brittany (now in France).
Traditional history
Melaine grew up at Plaz in Brain, near Redon. He was a pious child, often being pu ...
, Rennes, Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
, where the bacon is said to have hung for six centuries without being claimed.[ In ]Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
, there was a similar tradition in which the prize was a ham
Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term "ham ...
of bacon rather than a flitch. The ham was hung over the city gate, from where the winner was expected to climb up and remove it himself. One such winner had the prize revoked after winning it, after he inadvertently let slip that his wife would rebuke him for staining his coat while bringing down the ham.
Historian Hélène Adeline Guerber theorizes that the tradition traces back to an ancient Norse custom connected with the Yule
Yule, actually Yuletide ("Yule time") is a festival observed by the historical Germanic peoples, later undergoing Christianised reformulation resulting in the now better-known Christmastide. The earliest references to Yule are by way of indi ...
feast, a Germanic pagan festival that in modern times has inextricably been absorbed into Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
. Guerber theorizes that Yule is primarily dedicated to the god Thor
Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...
, but is also important for the god Freyr
Freyr (Old Norse: 'Lord'), sometimes anglicized as Frey, is a widely attested god in Norse mythology, associated with kingship, fertility, peace, and weather. Freyr, sometimes referred to as Yngvi-Freyr, was especially associated with Sweden an ...
(who rides a wild boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
, Gullinbursti
Gullinbursti (Old Norse: , meaning "Gold Mane" or "Golden Bristles") is a boar in Norse mythology.
When Loki had Sif's hair, Freyr's ship Skíðblaðnir, and Odin's spear Gungnir fashioned by the Sons of Ivaldi, he bet his own head with Brok ...
). A boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
is eaten at Yule in Freyr's honour and the boar can only be carved by a man of unstained reputation. Guerber says that Freyr was the patron of gladness and harmony and was often invoked by married couples who wished for the same, and that this led to the custom of married couples who actually succeeded in living in harmony for a given period being rewarded with a piece of boar meat. Guerber states that it is this tradition that became the ''flitch of bacon'' custom after converting boar meat into bacon.
In the arts and culture
''The flitch of bacon'', subtitled ''The custom of Dunmow: a tale of English home'' is a novel by William Harrison Ainsworth
William Harrison Ainsworth (4 February 18053 January 1882) was an English historical novelist born at King Street in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him. While completing his legal studies in ...
first published in 1854. The central plot of the story is the flitch at Dunmow and the scheming by the leading character to be awarded it by marrying a succession of women in an attempt to find the right one. The description of the ceremony in the book is partly based on the art of David Ogborne
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
, an eyewitness to the last ceremony in 1751.[Brand, p.178.]
''The Flitch of Bacon'' public house
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...
, of which the protagonist of Ainsworth's novel is the publican, still exists in Little Dunmow
Little Dunmow is a village situated in rural Essex, England, in the vale of the River Chelmer about east-southeast of the town of Great Dunmow. It can be reached from the Dunmow South exit of the A120 by following the road towards Braintree (B ...
.
''The Flitch of Bacon'' is a comic opera from 1779 by William Shield
William Shield (5 March 1748 – 25 January 1829) was an English composer, violinist and violist. His music earned the respect of Haydn and Beethoven.
Life and musical career
Shield was born in Swalwell near Gateshead, County Durham, the so ...
and Sir Henry Bate Dudley
The Reverend Sir Henry Bate Dudley, 1st Baronet (25 August 1745 – 1 February 1824) was a British minister, magistrate and playwright. He was born in Fenny Compton, Warwickshire, but in 1763 his father moved the family to Essex to take up a Rec ...
.
''Made in Heaven
''Made in Heaven'' is the fifteenth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 6 November 1995 by Parlophone Records in the United Kingdom and by Hollywood Records in the United States. It was the band's first and only release s ...
'' is a 1952 film starring David Tomlinson
David Cecil MacAlister Tomlinson (7 May 1917 – 24 June 2000) was an English stage, film, and television actor and comedian. Having been described as both a leading man and a character actor, he is primarily remembered for his roles as authorit ...
and Petula Clark
Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15 November 1932) is an English singer, actress, and composer. She has one of the longest serving careers of a British singer, spanning more than seven decades.
Clark's professional career began during the ...
about a married couple attempting to win the Dunmow flitch.
''Dunmow Flitch'' is the instrumental theme song to the French television series ''Bonne Nuit les Petits
''Bonne nuit les petits'' (English: "Good night kids") is a puppet television series which initially ran from 1962 to 1973, created by Claude Laydu. It had a revival series that aired from 1994-1997.
The series revolved Nounours the bear and Ulys ...
'' which premiered in 1962 and was remade in 1994. The series was created by Claude Laydu
Claude Laydu (; 10 March 1927 – 29 July 2011) was a Belgian-born Swiss actor on stage and in films. He was renowned for his performance in his film debut in the role of the young priest in Robert Bresson's '' Diary of a Country Priest'' (1951 ...
.
See also
References
Bibliography
*William Harrison Ainsworth
William Harrison Ainsworth (4 February 18053 January 1882) was an English historical novelist born at King Street in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him. While completing his legal studies in ...
''The flitch of bacon''
B. Tauchnitz, 1854.
* John Brand, Sir Henry Ellis (ed), ''Observations on the popular antiquities of Great Britain: chiefly illustrating the origin of our vulgar and provincial customs, ceremonies, and superstitions'', vol.2, Bohn, 1854.
*H. A. Guerber, ''Myths of the Norsemen: from the eddas and the sagas'', Courier Dover Publications, 1992 .
*George Monger, ''Marriage customs of the world: from henna to honeymoons'', ABC-CLIO, 2004 .
*Reuben Percy
Thomas Byerley (1789–1826), also known by the pseudonyms of Reuben Percy and Stephen Collet, was an English journalist and compiler of the ''Percy Anecdotes''.
Life
He was born in Brompton, North Yorkshire, England in 1789 and was the bro ...
and Sholto Percy
Joseph Clinton Robertson (c.1787–1852), pseudonym Sholto Percy, was a Scottish patent agent, writer and periodical editor. He was a political radical prominent in the early days of the working-class press in London, and in the debates within th ...
''The Percy anecdotes: original and select''
Vol.12, J. Cumberland, 1826.
* Ronay, Gabriel (1978), ''The Tartar Khan's Englishman'' (London: Cassel)
* Horace Walpole, John Wright (ed.)
''The Letters of Horace Walpole: Earl of Orford''
vol.3, Lea and Blanchard, 1842.
External links
Dunmow Flitch Trials
official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flitch Of Bacon Custom
Bacon
English culture