Seeing as today is Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Day as all pancake lovers wish to think of it, I thought we would try and find out just what the day is all about – apart from just eating pancakes that is. We already know that Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday and is the first day of Lent. It is observed mainly in English speaking countries but especially in England, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It is linked to Easter and so the date it is observed changes each year and is usually celebrated by the eating of pancakes.

We traditionally eat pancakes because they were a way of using up foods such as; sugar, fat, milk, flour and eggs, whose consumption was historically restricted during the fasting, associated with the 40 days of Lent.

Pancake races are held in villages and towns. The tradition is said to have originated when a housewife from Olney was so busy making pancakes that she forgot the time until she heard the church bells ringing for the service. She raced out of the house to church while still carrying her frying pan and pancake. The pancake race remains a relatively common festive tradition in the UK, and England in particular, even today. Participants with frying pans race through the streets tossing pancakes into the air and catching them in the pan whilst running.

The races started long ago with the most famous, at Olney in Buckinghamshire, being held since 1445. The contestants, traditionally women, carry a frying pan and race to the finishing line with the winner being the first to cross the line having tossed the pancake a certain number of times. Traditionally, when men want to participate, they must dress up as a housewife.

Scarborough celebrates by closing the foreshore to all traffic, closing schools early, and inviting all to skip. Traditionally, long ropes were used from the nearby harbour. The town crier rings the pancake bell, situated on the corner of Westborough (Main Street) and Huntress Row.

The children of the hamlet of Whitechapel, Lancashire keep alive a local tradition by visiting local households and asking “please a pancake”, to be rewarded with oranges or sweets. It is thought the tradition arose when farm workers visited the wealthier farm and manor owners to ask for pancakes or pancake fillings.

In Newfoundland and Labrador small tokens are frequently cooked inside the pancakes. Children take great delight in finding the objects, which are intended to provide a hidden message. For example; the person who receives a coin will be wealthy; a nail that they will be, or marry, a carpenter, etc.

In America they celebrate Mardi gras, which is French for Fat Tuesday, referring to the practice of eating fatty foods before the ritual fasting of. Popular practices include wearing masks and costumes, overturning social conventions, dancing, sports competitions, parades, etc.

The date of Shrove Tuesday is a moveable feast based on the cycles of the moon. The date can vary from as early as 3^rd February to as late as 9^th March.

Enjoy your pancakes!