Norton of Morton

Read a new instalment of Norton of Morton every Saturday at 4 o'clock

Saturday, 16 February 2013

All the fun of the (vintage) fair


In which G.M. Norton shares his experience of being the Finder of the Fair.


On the second Sunday of every month, a rather splendid event takes place in Stockport, in the town’s lovely Victorian covered market hall – The Vintage Village.

The Vintage Village is a pop-up fair boasting stalls offering quality authentic vintage goodies all under one roof.   

Each month, they ask somebody to act as the guest curator and select their favourite treasures from those available for purchase from the mix of vintage vendors. Thanks to the power of Twitter where an appeal was issued for a chap to be February’s Finder, I was kindly nominated for the honour by Old Fashioned Susie and Gent Cyclist.


Of course, I duly accepted the chance to play such an important role in the day’s proceedings.

Interested parties are directed to The Vintage Village website to discover my favourite finds

If you are based in the North of England or find yourself in these parts around the second weekend of the month, I would thoroughly recommend paying a visit to this rather wonderful haven of vintage goodness.

I was accompanied to the pop-up fair by my beloved and my eldest daughter who is pictured with yours truly as I was busy making notes. 

This was my first ever visit to The Vintage Village but I will most certainly be returning.

Not one to visit somewhere and not conduct some research into it's history, I discovered a couple of interesting facts about Stockport market.
Stockport market where the covered market hall sits is more than 750 years old. The market place has a rich history. It is rumoured to be the location of the last wife sale in England in 1833 (for the price of a gallon of beer). The site was also used for ancient forms of punishment including the stocks, whipping post, stretch neck and the ‘brank’. The ‘brank’ was a metal frame placed over the culprit’s head. It had a tongue plate with sharp iron pins on the end which went into the mouth and was designed to keep people quiet. 

Thankfully, Stockport Market Place today tend to stick to selling fruit, vegetables, meat, fish and assorted household objects on the general market days before the vintage community invade on the second Sunday of every month between 10.00am and 4.00pm.

This monthly Vintage Village fair has been described as good for a “rummage”, and it’s certainly a remarkable enterprise. As well as vintage clothes, accessories, jewellery, homewares and collectables, visitors can also indulge in delicious food – during my visit were delectable treats from Stuart Thornley Cake Design and tasty Mexican food from Margo and Rita.

If you’re a fan of anachronistic wares and in the region, The Vintage Village is not one to be missed.

G.M. Norton
Protagonist of ‘Norton of Morton'

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