World Town Crier’s Tournament

Pocklington’s Town Crier is bracing himself, as he is about to take on his greatest challenge yet…

Pocklington Town Crier Geoff Sheasby will need to be at his bellowing, booming, blaring best having recently been selected to compete at the World Town Crier’s Tournament that is soon to take place in the beautiful city of Chester.

The event will be taking place over a full week starting on 18 August and Geoff will be pitching his booming proclamations up against Town Criers from ten competing nations, which include representatives from the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Germany, Holland, Wales, The Channel Islands and Ireland.

The intensive tournament consists of three different cries.

Geoff doesn’t seem to be daunted, however, as he’ll be arriving with support… “It will be a fantastic experience,” he commented. “Diane, my wife, will be in 18th century costume, accompanying me and supporting me as my escort. It is undoubtedly my greatest challenge to date in the 14 years that I have been privileged to promote Pocklington as Town Crier, and I will be fully psyched up for the contest.”

The intensive tournament consists of three different cries. The first is an extolment of the virtues of the crier’s hometown. The remaining two cries are yet to be announced, but you can expect them to demand grandeur, confidence, and a fair bit of volume. All the proclamations are judged by a team of independent adjudicators who follow strict criteria. Vocal proficiency is key factor, as are confidence and bearing, engaging the audience, content of cry and, of course, accuracy. Geoff has assured us that ‘it is not just a case of shouting loudly’. “We will be marked in these areas according to our performance,” he said. “It is not simply a case of bellowing, in fact, if inaudibility is perceived through sheer volume, we will be marked down.”

A busy summer in on the cards for Geoff, as well as fulfilling his usual local engagements, he will also be competing in the Loyal Company of Town Criers’ British Championship in Banbury, Oxfordshire in September.

“I could say it keeps me off the streets but, of course, just the opposite is the case,” he jokes. “I can assure the Pocklington populace that I will do my best to represent them to the best of my ability. It is a massive privilege to be able to represent our wonderful town on both a global and national stage.”