Hull Fair is one of Europe's largest travelling funfairs, which comes to Kingston upon Hull, England for one week from 4 pm on Friday to 12 am of the Saturday eight days later, encompassing 11 October each year. The fair is open every day between these days except Sunday. Unlike small local fairs Hull Fair attracts rides, attractions, and travellers from a wide variety of different regions from around the country. The fair is one of the city's biggest traditions, as well as one of its oldest, having reached its 700th anniversary in 1993. Carrying on with such tradition, the fair is opened by the Lord Mayor of Hull on the opening evening, normally at 5 pm. It first opened from 9 to 23 March 1278. Local tradition states that the changing of the calendar in 1751 led the locals to believe the loss of eleven days affected their fair. “Give us back our eleven days,” was the cry as an enraged mob charged around the streets of Hull, calling for the return of their eleven-day festivities which they believed to have been lost due to the calendar change. The outraged masses got their wish and from that year onwards 11 October, or the Friday nearest to it, became the official date for Hull Fair. In 2017, the fair ran from 6 to 14 October. The fair is held on land on the east side of Walton Street, situated next to the KCOM Stadium and the Airco Arena.
Incidents
A 17-year-old student was seriously injured in a fall from the Bomber ride, after not being properly fastened into her seat. The incident, which took place in October 2002, resulted in the student suffering head and spinal injuries, two broken legs, as well as an injured hip and pelvis. In October 2008, the elastic cord of a reverse bungee ride broke whilst it was in use. Although people were on the ride when it happened, nobody suffered any injuries. On 13 October 2017, a fault with the Power Tower ride at Hull Fair left more than thirty riders, aged between nine and 60, trapped about 70 ft in the air for five hours. Firefighters had to use an aerial platform to rescue those stuck, and it was the third time that the ride had broken down since the fair had opened that year. Riders were giving blankets to keep them warm and got off at approximately midnight. That same year, a video was uploaded online showing a young boy managing to climb over and stand on a safety chain used to pin back riders, whilst on the Meteorite ride. On 7 October 2019, a woman flew off a ride. Supposedly the Airmaxxx 360. She landed on a teenager boy and hit another ride. The bar on her carriage failed and she was ejected from the ride. She suffered injuries to her face, abdomen, and leg and the injuries are not life-threatening. The teenager suffered minor injuries to his foot. The two rides were taped off at the time of the incident and closed. The rides were untapped but still closed. The fair continues to be open.
