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The Herring Queen Festival takes place in July/August each year
Started in 1939, followed on from an earlier holiday and celebration known as the Fishermen‘s Picnic. The Queen and her maids of honour are chosen from High School pupils and the skipper of each fishing boat nominates a girl to be a member of the Queen‘s court. Their costumes and emblems symbolise the sea and fishing community. On the Saturday the Queen arrives in Eyemouth Harbour on a traditional voyage by sea from St Abbs, escorted by a flag bedecked fishing fleet. A colourful crowning ceremony is performed and the procession tours the town, halting at the War Memorial and the Memorial to the 129 Eyemouth men, lost in the 1881 fishing disaster. A varied week‘s programme of sports competitions and entertainment follows and the Festival is brought to a close with the Fishermen‘s Service at the Parish Church.
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