Adrenaline rush brings YouTubers to Cooper's Hill

It may be a tradition dating back hundreds of years, but Gloucester's annual cheese-roll is attracting that most modern of beasts - the influencer.

In recent years, videos by Youtubers and TikTokers attempting the gravity-defying feat, which sees participants race down a steep, 180m hill in pursuit of a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese, have attracted millions of views - with one influencer triumphing and walking off with the coveted cheese on two recent occasions.

This year, German YouTuber Tom Kopke, known to his fanbase as Tooleko, is trying to set up a grudge match between himself and 23-time champion Chris Anderson and secure a hat-trick of victories for his channel.

So what is it about the event that makes it such a magnet for those who make their living through clicks?

Zac Alsop, who has 2.4 million followers on YouTube, first attempted the race in 2019 with his former business partner Jay Rawsthorne.

His video of the annual event, which takes place at Cooper's Hill in the village of Brockworth, netted 1.1 million views.

In 2025 he once again tried to get his hands on the cheese - but this time, he hired two stunt-doubles in catsuits hoping he could then switch with whomever crossed the line first, and claim their victory as his own.

Ultimately, Alsop and his team were pipped to the post by Kopke, but his 2025 video has nonetheless been viewed 12 million times.

Alsop thinks the fact competitors risk so much for so little is part of what turns the race into what influencers call "content gold", drawing huge engagement online.

"It's a lot of risk for something you can buy down the shops for not much money - and that's hilarious," says Alsop.

"I have no actual claim to be good at the cheese-roll - I am the one that has the mischievous plan."

He said the stuntmen involved in his video were "the real heroes", but his followers had loved "my clear desperation to get that cheese".

Having risked his neck twice, and now struggling with a slipped disk, Alsop has vowed not to race again - but he is certain more YouTubers will be gracing Cooper's Hill again this Monday.

"It's an incredible tradition," says Alsop, adding it is the sort of eccentric event that "makes the UK such a fascinating place".

"You get an excellent story - an incredible experience taking place in an amazing event - that's going to open the floodgates, for sure."

In 2024, American YouTuber IShowSpeed, who has 54 million followers, was among the participants, to the delight of the younger members of the crowd who follow him online. His resulting video notched up 4.4 million views.

But while he finished a respectable fourth, he needed hospital treatment after fracturing a leg he had previously broken.

Record-holder Anderson, 38, thought his racing days were over until Kopke approached him to tempt him out of retirement this year.

He has yet to make up his mind about competing next week, but the construction worker - and 23-time champion - has found himself caught up a media frenzy - with two well-known brands offering him sponsorship if he takes part.

He says social media has turbo-charged what was once seen as a quaint tradition: "It's the spectacle, the adrenaline rush - that's what brings people in.

"And the fact they get to see people hurl themselves down a big hill.

"There's so many YouTubers who contact me now just to appear in their videos and give them tips," says Anderson.

He thinks many content creators have no concept of just how steep Cooper's Hill is.

He remembers two Youtubers turning up in 2024 who ultimately decided against competing in the cheese-roll.

His advice for those who choose to take part: "Get insurance".

"If you want to win, you've got to run like crazy, lean backwards and stay on your feet," he advises.

Kopke, who has suggested this year will be his last time participating, has likened the popular interest in his cheese-rolling escapades to the pastimes of ancient civilisations.

"People have always wanted to watch other people doing crazy stuff," he says, comparing the mass appeal of those gathered in pursuit of cheese on Cooper's Hill to "gladiators fighting in the Colosseum in Rome".

"That one is the closest thing to it... because, it's like, almost no rules."

And, of course, Gloucester's ancient tradition's newfound popularity on social media has only driven more engagement.

"A lot of people watch it in person, but now you can distribute it to way more people with online digital video sharing platforms," says Kopke.

"If you see me and Chris doing it, and the videos get millions of views, then obviously a lot of other content creators are enticed to make their own video about it as well."

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