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Home  >  Blog  >  The Gallery – The Weekend – Spalding Flower Parade

The Gallery – The Weekend – Spalding Flower Parade

Trish Burgess Posted on08/05/201311/09/2024 Lincolnshire, Spalding, The gallery 46 Comments
Spalding Flower Parade 2013 Flower Queen
Float for the Flower Queen and her attendants

It was the end of an era for Spalding this weekend. The 55th and final Flower Parade was cheered through the town centre: more than 30,000 people lined the streets of this Lincolnshire market town and enjoyed the spectacle with a somewhat heavy heart.
The Spalding Flower Parade began in 1959 although growers in the area had celebrated Tulip Week since 1948, holding tours of the tulip fields which covered the region of South Holland in a blanket of vibrant colour. The creation of huge floats, decorated with tulip heads, led to the Flower Parade itself becoming a world famous event.
In recent years the tulip fields have reduced in number and although bodies such as the Rural Development Programme have supported it, the recession has meant that council money and assistance from sponsors has dwindled. Unless something can be done to inject the event with more cash, it would seem that 2013 was the final year.
I remember being part of the parade for three years, as a member of my AmDram group, Spalding Amateur Dramatic and Operatic Society. I recall sitting in a huge shed for a couple of days, laboriously pinning tulip heads onto our float before dressing up in costume and singing songs from our musical shows as the parade travelled through the town. It was a fantastic experience, seeing the crowds and being part of the community for such a special occasion.

On Saturday I was in the crowd, cheering everyone else on, enjoying the floats and the marching bands. The poor weather in the previous weeks meant that tulips were in scarce supply so feathers, foil, ribbons and balloons were drafted in to complete the sculptures. Although I missed seeing huge swathes of velvety tulips on the floats, creativity won the day and the theme of  ‘Let’s Celebrate’ was a fitting way to bring this historical event to a close.Here are more images from the parade: the front and back end of the dragon (representing Chinese New Year), ‘It must be love’, birthday cake and the Carnival of Venice. 

 

 

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46 Comments

  1. BavarianSojourn Reply
    08/05/2013 at 10:18 am

    I can't imagine the hours it must take to create some of those… Lovely pics! 🙂

  2. Trish Burgess Reply
    08/05/2013 at 10:21 am

    It's a time-consuming task. Each tulip head is pinned individually onto polystyrene, though the small piece of remaining stalk. I remember my fingers were killing me when I had to do it. There's a real knack to it to make sure there are no gaps.

  3. Nicola Carpenter Reply
    08/05/2013 at 11:12 am

    Oh wow. Gorgeous pictures, that really must have been a sight to see in person.

    Herding Cats

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 12:03 pm

      Of course I was watching it through the lens – I wish I could see it all again without the camera!

  4. Kelloggs Ville Reply
    08/05/2013 at 12:12 pm

    I remember being taken to see it when I was young. Glorious.

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 9:59 pm

      I think you would have seen it in its heyday. The floats were probably much larger, as were the crowds.

  5. Sonja Hoyt Reply
    08/05/2013 at 1:56 pm

    That's cool! The Rose bowl parade is my favorite, so I think I would love this one as well.

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 4:56 pm

      Having looked at images of the Rose Bowl Parade, this is definitely a mini version, but still quite a thing of beauty.

  6. Jaime Oliver Reply
    08/05/2013 at 2:17 pm

    Wow that looks amazing!

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 4:57 pm

      I'm hoping it can be brought back some time in the future. It would be such a shame to lose it.

  7. Helpful Mum Reply
    08/05/2013 at 4:10 pm

    Those are absolutely amazing. Do they smell fantastic as they go past?

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 4:58 pm

      Do you know I hadn't thought of that. I don't think they do. I can't remember much smell when I used to pin them on myself. I think the heads have been separate from the stalks for too long.

  8. Tas D Reply
    08/05/2013 at 4:11 pm

    Wow thats really pretty and big!! Bet it was a lot of fun to watch!

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 5:01 pm

      I think we do pretty well for a small market town. The different themes over the years have brought some great floats – Lady Penelope and her pink car comes to mind! There is a great buzz in the town, everyone sitting by the roadside, with their camping seats and flasks!

  9. About Last Weekend Reply
    08/05/2013 at 5:15 pm

    Really cool – and a lorra lorra pink on those babies, love the Dragon burying his head in the sand, is he looking for the cake?

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 5:19 pm

      Yes, I thought I'd chosen a lorra pink floats. I'm not sure whether that was the dominant colour or whether I just instinctively prefer them.
      If he did eat the cake, I hope he re-lit any candles!

    • About Last Weekend Reply
      10/05/2013 at 4:47 pm

      yes there is some scary stories about floats where that has happened – or did I just see that in a movie?

  10. libby Reply
    08/05/2013 at 6:10 pm

    How wonderful this sort of parade is…and how sad to think it might be the last…the flower queen float looks enormous!

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 10:01 pm

      The flower queen float was a wonderful one this year. They also had another float with lots of the former flower queens on it – that was very special for all the ladies and I knew three of them so lots of waving!

  11. Coombe Mill Reply
    08/05/2013 at 7:20 pm

    I love carnivals, they are quite a big thing here in Cornwall too.

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 10:01 pm

      Carnivals do so much to bring communities together. I do hope they can revive this in the future: it would be a pity to lose it.

  12. Jay Reply
    08/05/2013 at 7:42 pm

    How wonderful, such a shame it may be the last one.

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 10:03 pm

      Our local MP is keen for it not to finish. He and the local press did much to bring it back from the brink a few years ago. It would be good if more money could be sourced.

  13. Steve Reply
    08/05/2013 at 8:05 pm

    Who says flower power is a thing of the past!

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 10:04 pm

      Yeah!

  14. Louise Reply
    08/05/2013 at 8:09 pm

    Some amazing floats – such a shame it may be the last. x

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      08/05/2013 at 10:04 pm

      Fingers crossed someone may rescue it in the future.

  15. Lous Lake Views Reply
    08/05/2013 at 10:40 pm

    Wow, they are absolutely spectacular, I had no idea they did something like this in Lincolnshire. Such a shame to lose it

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      09/05/2013 at 7:14 am

      I know there is a sense that it is not so relevantbut I think it's part of the region's heritage. Comes down to money at the end of the day.

  16. asturiandiary Reply
    09/05/2013 at 5:26 am

    Gosh, those floats are truly spectacular! Such a shame that it's not going to be continued.

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      09/05/2013 at 7:18 am

      It's very sad. I think visitor numbers have decreased over the years so maybe there needs to be a rethink.

  17. Troy Reply
    09/05/2013 at 7:56 am

    I didn't they were stopping doing ths – it is a real shame.

    Changing subject, I've just read a review of a burlesque musical in Ipswich and thought I'd share it with you. Quote – "a lot of wonderfully crafted risqué show numbers….it's not a one woman show And her three male co-stars more than hold their own". I can't decide if the play on words was intentional or not!

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      09/05/2013 at 3:04 pm

      I reckon intentional!

  18. Franglaise Mummy Reply
    09/05/2013 at 12:56 pm

    How sad that it's coming to an end, but what great pics! I love a parade!

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      09/05/2013 at 3:05 pm

      They aren't bad, considering we were nearly late getting there – but we know good places to stand!

  19. Ross Mountney Reply
    09/05/2013 at 6:45 pm

    Sad end to such a spectacular parade! Also the end of the incredible swathes of tulips across the nearby fields – I miss them!

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      10/05/2013 at 9:07 am

      Yes, me too. We have the daffodil fields but the tulips I think have moved elsewhere. I read in the paper yesterday that there are plans to replace the parade with something – but not sure what.

  20. Mother Goutte Reply
    09/05/2013 at 8:05 pm

    What an amazing amount of work and passion gone into this! Quite inspiring 🙂

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      10/05/2013 at 9:08 am

      It requires a huge amount of voluntary work but so worthwhile.

  21. Gailann Houston Reply
    09/05/2013 at 8:14 pm

    Wow, that looks amazing a shame it's over x

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      10/05/2013 at 9:10 am

      Fingers crossed they might have some kind of flower and food festival instead with some static floats. That might keep the costs down.

  22. Curry Queen Reply
    10/05/2013 at 4:50 am

    I love things like that – so quirky and quintessentially English! I do hope they manage to find some sponsorship to continue (lottery funding?).

    • Trish Burgess Reply
      10/05/2013 at 9:11 am

      We went to another local event the day after which has been supported by a huge Arts Council grant. I think you're right, there needs to be some rethinking on which bodies might support it.

  23. Sarah Reply
    10/05/2013 at 10:06 am

    It'll be a shame if this is the last year, but I suppose nothing stays the same, and if they can't get the money, that'll be it until they do. It would be a good idea to investigate other types of funding though. Such traditions are worth keeping, being such amazing and spectacles.

  24. Funky Wellies Reply
    12/05/2013 at 1:03 pm

    How sad that it will not happen again. It looks fabulous. xx

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