2017 marked the 800th anniversary of the Parish of Teddington and with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund, it was celebrated with a programme of events between June and November called the Teddington 800 festival.
While the programme included church services to give thanks to God for 800 years of parish ministry and Christian worship, a host of events to celebrate the local community and heritage of Teddington also took place, leaving a lasting legacy of community engagement and goodwill.
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10/11 June: The Launch Weekend
A series of events at St Mary with St Alban's Church, including a service with sermon from The Revd. Dr. John Hall, Dean of Westminster, and churchyard tea, kicked off the festival in style. You can read about the weekend here.
25 June: Teddington Pram Race
St Mary with St Alban's Church competed in the Teddington Pram Race for the first time to celebrate the Parish's 800th anniversary. The team raised £445 in sponsorship and won the ‘Best Dressed’ award for their medieval costumes from 1217. You can find out more here.
9 July: Family Sports Day
Everyone knows that Teddington is full of sporty people, and this was a wonderful opportunity to sample almost all of the sports available in our town, as well as watch teams from many of our sports clubs compete against each other in such competitive events as the egg and spoon, the sack race, and of course the three-legged race. You can read about and see pictures of the fun and games here.
19 July: Teddington Cricket Club vs Bishop's XI
In mid-July, we enjoyed one of the more exotic, if not even idiosyncratic, events when Teddington Cricket Club graciously played host to the Bishop’s XI, aka Dr Graham Tomlin, Bishop of Kensington, and a talented bunch of local clergy, including our very own Vicar Joe in a 20 over, evening game in Bushy Park. View the write up and photos from the game here.
August 2017: Minecraft Challenge
Ben Hogg, aged 9, was crowned the winner of the Teddington 800 Minecraft Challenge held over the summer. You can find out about his winning model here.
10 September: River Blessing and Celebration
A service of thanks, followed by a celebration of the importance of the importance of the river to the existence, work and leisure of Teddington. The service booklet is here and you can read more about the day's proceedings here.
24 September: 800 'Songs of Praise'
One of the many highlights of Teddington 800 was the Songs of Praise. This gave real meaning to Churches Together in Teddington (CTE) with people coming to St Mary with St Alban's to sing the top ten hymns or songs chosen in a poll some weeks previously. You can find out what they were here.
September: Visions of Teddington History & Art Exhibition
A display of the major historical developments over the last eight centuries, combined with depictions from artists, local schools and organisations was shown at The Landmark Arts Centre and St Mary with St Alban's Church. View images of the exhibition here.
30 September: The Teddington Ball
An evening of friendship, good food and dance was had by all, described by one attendee as 'fairyland'. Read his reflections on the event here.
14 October: Lecture and Concert Celebrating Thomas Traherne
Talks on the poetry of Thomas Traherne and a short concert featuring the poet's most evocative verses were both well attended. Recordings of the concert and lectures are available online.
11 November: The Teddington Review written by Catherine Randall
Both the matinee and evening performances of The Teddington Review, a light-hearted account of 800 years of history in just under 75 minutes, sold out. The performances, which were given at Normansfield Theatre, were specially written for Teddington 800 by local writer Catherine Randall, and included music, some factually accurate history and plenty of bad jokes. You can find out more here.
