Town Criers Competition

Hear our own world-famous Town Crier introduce fellow Criers from towns across the North of England in this ever-popular event sponsored by W Bowers. The event marks the granting of the
Town's Market Charter in 1310 and the Knaresborough Town Criers continue the tradition of opening the market with a cry at the Market Cross at 11am every Wednesday.

The Knaresborough Town Crier does not compete but acts as compere and delivers the ‘benchmark cry’ which sets the standard whereby the judges mark the cries that follow. Each entrant then delivers two cries: in the first round their ‘home cry’ showcasing the merits of their own town/city; and in the second round a ‘theme cry’ on a subject provided to them in advance by the competition organisers. Each cry must be a minimum of 100 words and a maximum of 140 words, including the obligatory three shouts of ‘Oyez!’ at the beginning and ‘God Save the King!’ at the end.

The cries are judged on five criteria:
 Sustained Volume and Clarity
 Diction and Inflection
 Presentation and Engagement
 Content of Cry
 Accuracy

As well as the main competition, there are sometimes also prizes for the Best Dressed Town Crier, Consort or Couple. This is always a lively, colourful and entertaining event, suitable for all the family, so come along and join in the fun!