kay_taylor and some other folk, but missed messages conspired against that. For those that don't know, every year St. Giles (the large road on which the Eagle and Child is located) is closed down for a couple of days to become a fairground. There were dozens of attractions ranging from gypsy fortune-tellers to a fair-sized roller-coaster. There were, of course, all the usual games of skill - throwing hoops over things, shooting with pellet guns, arrows or crossbows, basketball, and so on. Not having much in the way of that kind of skill (and also not having any great need for large stuffed toys), I decided to pass on these.The roller-coaster was a wild mouse type - not the sort I'm too keen on, so my first choice was Big Ben Tower. It's an impressively tall edifice, and you get bounced to the top of the tower, where it held for a fair while (fantastic views of the dreaming spires of Oxford) before dropping back down, again with a few bounces. Next up was Stargate - a nasty piece of work in which you stand on the inside of a drum which both spins and a fair clip and flips over as well - I was beginning to think "can we stop now" towards the end. Finally I went on Chaos - you sit in hanging seats, which are spun around in addition to the whole thing doing a big swing like a pirate ship - top stuff. An this point, my stomach (and other parts of me that had been constricted by the seats and safety restraints) politely suggested that enough was enough and I decided not to tempt fate with a fourth ride.
September 10 2003, 03:50:35 UTC 17 years ago
Anywhere between 80 and 120,000 people are expected to attend the fair this year, so make it your first destination this coming Monday or Tuesday.
Judging by the crowds I think they did indeed get more than 80 people this year.