Town to echo to sound of town criers for contest

A national town crier competition is set to be hosted in Warwick for the first time in the history of the event.

The 2026 version will take place on 23 May in The Pageant Gardens, on Castle Street, from 14:00 BST.

Michael Reddy, who has held the town crier role for Warwick for the last 10 years, said the competition, which takes place every two years, will have criers coming from across the country.

"I'm hosting this competition so I don't take part, because it's in my town, so I host it," he said.

"People do two cries, your home cry promoting your town and you also do a given cry, given by the host."

Judges will assess criers based on their volume, diction, clarity, inflection and overall presentation.

Reddy said, in his case, it was the history of Warwick which drew him in to becoming a crier.

He told the BBC that the act was "all about the breathing", adding the more air In the lungs of a crier allowed them to carry out their performance for longer.

Speaking about the history of the crier, he said they first began centuries ago, in the time of ancient Greece.

"It was about people with a big voice making proclamations so people knew what was going on," Reddy said.

"Not everyone could read or write; in fact very few people could - that's what the idea was behind it all."

Reddy claimed the role of a beadle, a town crier and a police officer combined, first came around in Warwickshire in 1554 and their role was to protect the mayor.

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