Burley’s Gifts named winner of People’s Choice award in Southwell Bramley Apple Festival shop window competition

The public’s favourite apple-themed shop window has been revealed, after a town’s Bramley celebrations.

Southwell hosted its annual Bramley Apple Festival on Saturday (October 25), which saw the town filled with fruity fun — and the high street was no exception as traders decorated their window displays for the occasion.

The festival — which also includes food and drink stalls at Southwell Minster, a pie baking competition, and the traditional crowning of the Bramley Apple royalty — honours the popular cooking apple, which was first grown in the town from a pip planted by Mary Ann Brailsford in the early 1800s and is now highly regarded around the world.

A shop window competition is part of the event, and retailers were awash with Bramley-esque greens, showcasing everything from apple-themed products to the famed fruit itself.

This year saw the addition of a brand-new publicly-voted category — the People’s Choice award — alongside the committee-judged winners.

Taking the first-ever win in this category was Burley's Gifts, on Market Place, which received the most public votes for its window filled with Bramley matches, candles, bath, and beauty products.

It was announced on Tuesday (October 28), when festival chairman Roger Merryweather and Newark and Sherwood District Council’s town projects officer Sarah Payne presented owner Carolyn Smith with the award.

Daphne Oxland, of the festival organising committee, said: “With the addition of the People’s Choice award the shops really upped their game.

“We saw some really good displays, excellent entries from both new businesses and previous winners.

“There was quite an emphasis in the shop windows on how to use the apples, such as recipes, and support for locally grown produce and British farming. It also had a real message of healthy eating.

“So many got involved — shops, offices, and cafes.”

In the main shop window competition, judged by Roger Merryweather and Daphne Oxland, Home Bake and the Beaumond House charity shop took 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.