Chester’s Town Criers Take Their Big Voices to the Shops

An editorial illustration of a town crier raising a bell before Chester shoppers beneath the Eastgate clock

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Chester’s Town Criers Take Their Big Voices to the Shops

The program for Thursday, September 24, gives competitors in Chester’s World Town Crier Tournament a shopping-street assignment: the “Retail Cries” round is listed for Eastgate Square at 11 a.m. local time.

An editorial illustration of a town crier raising a bell before Chester shoppers beneath the Eastgate clock
Editorial illustration: a town crier brings ceremonial flair to a busy Chester shopping street.

The five-day tournament runs September 22–26. Visit Chester says 25 criers from eight nations are taking part in the event’s return to the city for the first time since 2014. The program lists the retail-themed contest for 11 a.m. at Eastgate Square, with four judges assessing the competitors and a celebrity judge announcing the day’s winner at the close.

The retail assignment gives the traditional town cry a shopping-street setting. The tournament’s other rounds feature hometown proclamations and a finale themed around accommodation. Visit Chester traces the city’s town-crier tradition to 1554.

An editorial illustration of several costumed town criers making proclamations to smiling shoppers in Chester
Editorial illustration: competitors and spectators share the moment in Chester’s historic streets.

Visit Chester lists the tournament’s judging criteria as vocal power, clarity, showmanship and audience engagement. The day’s schedule turns a familiar city-centre shopping trip into the backdrop for one of Britain’s oldest public-speaking traditions.

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