Southwell hosts successful annual Bramley Apple Festival 2025, celebrating legacy of town’s famed fruit

The legacy of a famed fruit has again been celebrated at an ap-peel-ing event which attracted thousands to town.

Southwell played host to the annual Bramley Apple Festival — now in its 32nd year — on Saturday (October 25), which saw a variety of apple-themed events, displays, demonstrations, and family fun take place right across the town.

This year there was also a special planting ceremony, with the Dean of Southwell, Canon Neil Evans, and festival chairman Roger Merryweather rooting a new Bramley Apple tree in the cathedral grounds, near a Merryweather grave.

The family has a long association with the cooking apple, which was first grown in the town from a pip planted by Mary Ann Brailsford in the early 1800s and later cultivated and sold by gardener Henry Merryweather.

Following the tree planting, the Dean and the chairman officially opened the celebrations which included a prayer for the fruit’s prosperity.

Roger Merryweather said: “It’s a special annual occasion which celebrates an apple which is well known in Southwell and almost everywhere.”

Among the attractions for the day was the Festival of Food and Drink in Southwell Minster, which ran from 10.30am to 3.30pm.

Daphne Oxland, of the organising committee, said: “The real highlight this year was a display of over 320 heritage apples, pears, and cider apples, which took centre stage in the Minster.

“It was presented by heritage apple collector Paul Barnett, who was really busy with people asking for apple identification, and he also gave lots of information about the fruit.

“Chairman Roger Merryweather also, for the first time ever, presented a selection of apples from his family’s own orchard.”

The cathedral also boasted more than 30 stalls, alongside cookery demonstrations by Teresa Bovey.

“The demonstrations always go down well,” Daphne Oxland added.

“The stalls ranged from homemade scones, apple turnovers, sauces and chutneys from Norwood Park, to wildlife charities, macarons made in Southwell, and Indian food. It was a real mixture.

“There were lots of special delicacies on display.”

The foodie appeal continued in the wider town, with eateries including the Hearty Goodfellow and Saracen’s Head offering apple-themed menus, and the town’s butchers selling specials such as sausage rolls with apple.

Meanwhile, there was apple printing, a longest apple peel competition, and musical entertainment from a pop-up choir at the town’s National Trust property The Workhouse and Infirmary — and at Southwell Library winners were named in the Bramley Apple Pie baking contest, children’s fairy cake decorating competition, and the traditional crowning of the Bramley Apple king, queen, prince, and princess.

Anna Joyce of Southwell took the win in the pie contest, with Sue Beckett named as runner up. Sibling pairs Oliver Coughlan, 7, and Anabelle Coughlan, 10, of Bleasby, and Ned Green, 6, and Elsie Green, 10, of Southwell, were joint champions for their cakes.

Lowes Wong Infant School’s Rupert Powell, 4, of Southwell, was named Bramley Apple King, and Emilia Ellis, 5, also of Southwell, as Queen. Youngsters from Children’s House nursery were the accompanying princes and princesses.

The original Bramley Apple Tree, now owned by Nottingham Trent University, was open to visitors, and lining the streets with more apple-themed fun were a range of creatively decorated shop windows.

These were up for the Bramley Shop Window Awards, judged by Roger Merryweather and Daphne Oxland, which saw Home Bake and the Beaumond House charity shop take joint first place; Aspire, Atelier Katie Savage, and the Handicentre joint second; and Minster Flowers, Gossips, The Wine Bank, and The Cathedral Shop come joint third.

Highly commended were A J Beckett, Alasdair Morrison, Burleys, Carpet Connection, Jack Dempsies Cafe, @ Labels, Real Clothing, Southwell Library, Stoppards, Studio Lingerie, and Sweets of Southwell.

This year also had the introduction of a public vote category, the People’s Choice Shop Window Award, which is to be announced today (Tuesday, October 28).

Shops were said to have “really upped their game” with the introduction of the new category, inspiring some “excellent entries” with themes of recipes, British-grown food, and healthy eating, from both past winners and new businesses on the high street.

Attention now turns to planning for next year’s festival, and Daphne Oxland added: “It’s a very established date in the Southwell calendar, one of the big Saturdays for the town — it really brings all these different elements of the community together.

“We’re really appreciative of our major sponsors, who this year were Newark and Sherwood District Council, and Nottinghamshire County Council.”