A glance out of the window suggests that our optimism for a sunny bank holiday earlier this week was probably unfounded. So, rather than continue to extol the virtues of a hamper or picnic basket for the weekend, we thought it would be nice to find a bit more about why May Day is a public holiday. Then we’ll get back to what we do best, which is designing fantastic Christmas hampers!

May Day is a traditional holiday in many cultures which occurs on May the 1st and refers to several public holidays. May Day celebrations take place in many different countries, in differing forms. These include Finland, Ireland, France, Germany, Scotland, Hawaii and the Americas, to name just a few.

In England, traditional May Day rites include Morris Dancing, crowning a May Queen and dancing round the Maypole.

The May Day Bank Holiday, always on the first Monday in May, was traditionally the only one to affect the state school calendar as the Good Friday and Easter Monday bank holidays usually fall within the 2 weeks breaks between the school terms.

As well as celebrations in Oxford, Padstow and throughout the country, in Durham students of the University of Durham gather on Prebends bridge at 5am to see the sunrise and enjoy pagan festivities, folk music, dancing, madrigal singing and a barbecue.

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It’s another day of glorious sunshine in Dorset and we all have our fingers crossed that the good weather will continue over the bank holiday weekend. There are a few pessimists who are convinced that this lovely warm spell can’t last, but we’re determined to look on the bright side and plan for a warm and bright Bank Holiday weekend.

What could be better than a picnic this weekend? It might be a little cold for swimming in the sea (in my view it’s still too cold in July for this sort of carry on), but wherever you are in the UK, there is probably an unspoilt stretch of coastline which is perfect for a picnic. Failing that, the local park, woodland or green space will certainly suffice.

If you need a basket to stuff with goodies, our fitted picnic basket is big enough for the whole family and has all the hardware that you’ll need. If you’re travelling a little lighter then our picnic backpack has ample space for two, a cool area and wine bottle holders. If the weather’s good enough for a barbecue then look no further than our barbecue bucket, or barbecue grill!

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