Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day: Feb. 5

  • Published
  • By Suzanne Harper
  • 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
RAF LAKENHEATH, England --  Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day -- all four terms refer to the same day: the day before the beginning of Lent. 

Since the date of Easter changes each year, so does the date of Shrove Tuesday. Shrove Tuesday is the day to reflect, to seek penance and to get ready for Lent. Many churches will hold 'shriving' services before the beginning of the long Lenten fast. 'Shrove' and 'shriving' are words from Old English connected with the confession of sins and their absolution. 

However, most British children will also know Shrove Tuesday as Pancake Day, and small hands - probably faces too - will be covered in flour, as children help their mums and dads  make pancakes. 

The traditional British pancake is unlike the American version; it is more like the American 'crepe'. The pancake is cooked in a shallow pan and served with a sprinkling of sugar and a dribble of lemon juice. In more modern times, syrups have also become popular. Tossing the thin, round British pancake, so that is can be cooked evenly on both sides, is great fun, if a little messy at times. In Britain, pancakes are often eaten solely on Shrove Tuesday rather all year round, as is the way with American pancakes. 

Across the U.K., many communities will indulge in the strange tradition of the 'pancake race'. Olney in Buckinghamshire (north of Milton Keynes) claims the origin of the Pancake Day race, which goes back to medieval times, starting in 1445. 

To prepare for the fasting season of Lent, the citizens of the town commonly cleared the delicacies, such as eggs and butter, the day before it started. By tradition, the race in Olney began when a young woman, who just finished making her pancakes, heard the church bells tolling for the start of the shriving service. She stopped everything, took up her frying pan with a pancake in it, and ran to the church. 

The custom died out, but was revived in 1924 and became a well-known event by 1939. It was suspended during World War II, but restarted in 1948. 

Today's race is a 415-yard run from the market place to a point midway down Church Lane. The churchwarden starts the race with a large, bronze pancake bell. 

Competitors start running down the street while tossing pancakes in a pan. The winner receives the traditional kiss from the verger (an official in the Anglican church who takes care of the interior of a church building) and the vicar (Anglican version of priest or pastor) greets her with the blessing, "The peace of the Lord be always with you." 

After the race, the runners, officials, townsfolk and visitors proceed to the church for the service where they sing many of the famous Olney Hymns. John Newton, the reformed ex-slave trader who wrote "Amazing Grace," and William Cowper, the poet who wrote "God moves in a mysterious way," both lived in Olney. 

The winner and participants place their frying pans around the font and sit in special seating in the chancel. 

There are some strict rules for entry to the race. Only women who are at least 18 years old and have lived in the town of Olney for at least three months prior to the event or, if living away, have their permanent home in the town, are allowed to compete. 

Competitors must wear the traditional costume of a housewife, which includes a skirt, apron and head covering. 

Since 1950, Olney has competed with Liberal, Kansas, which holds an identical race, to see which town can produce the fastest competitor. After the 2006 race, Liberal was leading with 31 wins to Olney's 25.