Online presence for St Mary's Village Carnival, Eaton Bray, Edlesborough, Northall, Dagnall.
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Carnival 2006 - Films

Worm Charming

The Olympic Worm Charming Championship is coming to Edlesborough Green in 2012.

You have just six more years to get yourself into shape and fit to compete to be the Olympic Champion. Get out on the Green this year to hone your skills and develop your technique.

2012 - Worm Charming OlympicsSo far the entries from our villages have failed to come close to matching the world record of 511 worms in half an hour. Surely you can beat the efforts of our winners so far:

  • 2003 - Stacey Loczy - 2
  • 2004 - David Griffiths - 5
  • 2005 - Gill Ratherham - 8

AGAIN THIS YEAR THE USE OF WATER WILL BE ALLOWED

We hope you will get yourself prepared for the event - hopefully build yourself a 'patent' worm-charming machine and submit your entries in advance of the event in which 100 3m square grids will be marked out for competitors. 'Strict' rules will apply!

World Worm Charming Competition

The International Federation of Charming Worms and Allied Pastimes (IFCWAP) has held the World Worm Charming Competition at Willaston County Primary School, Willaston, Nantwich, Cheshire since 1980.

Their website includes pictures and results from this year's championship along with a Roll of Honour for the past 29 years.

The Rules

  1. Entry fee £1 per square - Entry forms available from Gordon Gray in advance or on the day from the stage.
  2. Each competitor / team to operate in a 3 x 3 metre plot.
  3. No more than three members of a team are allowed in any one plot.
  4. Each competitor/team may collect worms from his/her own plot only.
  5. Duration of competition to be 20 minutes, starting at about 4pm.
  6. Worms may not be dug from the ground. Vibrations only to be used.
  7. Participants will be allowed to water their grid square up to 45 minutes before the event starts.
  8. Any form of music may be used to charm the worms out of the earth.
  9. A garden fork of normal type may be stuck into the ground and vibrated by any manual means to encourage worms to the surface.
  10. Garden forks to be suitably covered to prevent possible injury when being transported to and from the competition. Forks to be kept in cars prior to the competition. No accidents please!
  11. Worms to be handled carefully and collected in damp peat and placed in a suitable, named container provided by the organising committee.
  12. The competitor who 'charms' the most worms to be the winner and be awarded the trophy. In the event of a tie, the winner to be decided by a further two minutes charming.

It may help to know that the most successful method used so far is that of hand vibrating a four tyne garden fork inserted approximately 15 cms into the turf.

© IFCWAP 2002 If you wish to sing to the worms potentially good tunes are:

  • Good Vibrations,
  • Rhythm of the falling rain,
  • Flowers in the rain,
  • The green, green grass of home,
  • Handel’s Water Music,
  • Raindrops keep falling on my head etc.