Wet weather but high spirits, as Lustleigh celebrates May Day 2026
On Sunday 3rd May the Dartmoor village of Lustleigh in Devon celebrated the 121st anniversary of May Day* (or Beltane): the oldest continuous celebration of its kind in the South West, and one of the UK’s most famous iterations of this quintessentially British celebration.
Despite the downpours, the day drew large crowds to the picture postcard village of Lustleigh. May Day 2026 commenced with the children of Lustleigh accompanying the May Queen, Holly Skilton around the village to traditional song, folk music, a welcome from the Town Crier and a blessing from the Rector.
The crowds then returned to Lustleigh Orchard for the crowning of May Queen, Holly on the beautiful granite May Day rock and throne, followed by the eagerly-anticipated maypole dancing. Among the 24 village children dancing, were a large number of second generation maypolers: a new era of young villagers picking up the ribbons to celebrate this historic tradition and mark the beginning of summer.
What followed was an afternoon of old-fashioned fairground stalls and face painting with morris dancing by Grimspound Border Morris and folksongs from Brown Bread Choir entertaining young and old. Dean and Shirley, owners of the much-loved Lustleigh Dairy served ice creams, while villagers and visitors enjoyed afternoon tea and cake in Lustleigh Village Hall.
Lustleigh – dubbed the prettiest village on Dartmoor - has celebrated the tradition of a May Day since 1905, when it was revived by noted antiquarian Cecil Torr. The Lustleigh May Day rock bears the names of all the May Queens who have come before, with Holly the latest addition. Holly has danced around the maypole with her sister and village friends since she was four years old and has long looked forward to this day.
Reflecting on the celebrations, Chairman of the Lustleigh May Day Committee, Harriet Knowles comments: “Although we’ve been lucky enough to have sunshine on May Day in recent years, yesterday’s rain didn’t stop the visitors flocking to Lustleigh and it certainly didn’t dampen the children’s spirits. We are so proud of the enthusiasm and efforts of the children who work so hard to learn the dances, and to the whole community who pull together to share this special spring day.”
Lustleigh May Day will take place on Saturday 1st May 2027. For more information please visit lustleighmayday.com
* 2026 marks 121 years of May Day being celebrated continuously from one year to the next, as revived by noted antiquarian Cecil Torr in 1905. Celebrations did take place in the village before 1905 but in a less regular fashion
Photos by Owain Davies.
