Fundraising event for this year's Tweed Salmon Queen tradition

The crowning of the Salmon Queen pays homage to one of Berwick’s oldest traditions – that of catching salmon.

The ceremony started in 1292 and was revived in the 1950s, and has been adapted over the years to maintain and commemorate a joyous occasion.

In recent years, while the coronation has been maintained, other activities have dwindled. Therefore, Sandra Davie and her committee recently held a fundraising event in the Town Hall to try and ensure a full programme of activities can be arranged this year.

She said: “We have many ideas, including asking the school pupils to design a logo.

“The event will be known as the Tweed Salmon Queen and will be open to any girl in year 10 of the Academy who lives in Berwick, Tweedmouth or Spittal.

“This year’s crowning ceremony will take place on Thursday, July 20 as part of the celebrations for the Tweedmouth Feast.”

The Tweedmouth Feast has traditionally been held during Berwick Trades Fortnight’s Holiday. The feast day marks the festival’s patron Saint Boisil, who was one of the early monks living in Melrose Abbey.

The high point of festivities is the coronation of the Salmon Queen. In times past, the key personnel would have been rowed across the river to Tweedmouth in a coble – the boat used for catching salmon – but nowadays, the boat is towed over The Old Bridge, often led by a piped band and followed by community groups.

At the Queen’s Gardens, where the Queen waits to be crowned by the Mayor, her predecessor will give her farewell address.