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Archive video shows historic pancake race in 1956

The town of Olney in Buckinghamshire claims to hold the oldest annual pancake race in the world, running for about 580 years.

BBC Archive video showed crowds lining the streets on Shrove Tuesday in 1956, when resident Cicely Sparrow won the event.

The race itself dates back to 1445 and sees the town's women running with frying pans from the market square to the church.

Spectators and the international media still gather to this day, with the 2025 event seeing the best-ever turnout, according to organisers.

5 hours ago

Resurfacing equipment on the tarmac of an airport runway. The shot is taken from a low angle so you can see the tarmac, the machines, workers in yellow high vis and the sky at night. It's all lit up by a big light in the air.

Timelapse captures resurfacing of Luton Airport runway

Crews have just a few hours overnight to resurface the runway so planes can take off in the morning.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A man in gym clothes pictured mid-air between two towers of foam blocks about a metre high.

'Active lad' claims plyometric push-ups record

A trainer breaks a Guinness World Record for the number of push-ups-with-a-difference in a minute.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

White van drives down A421 at night at speed overtaking a red car and approaching a lorry

Van speeds away from pursuing police at 120mph

Police say they arrested a driver after the chase from Bedford to Luton.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A group of vibrant green parrots cling to a red brick wall, scattered across its vertical surface in various poses.

Parakeets feeding on barn wall display Amazonian behaviour

Ornithologist Jack Baddams says the video is "really cool".

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Three ostriches cluster together in a field next to a wooden fence, all looking towards a zookeeper. She stands on the other side of the fence with her head turned away from the camera towards the birds. She wears a forest green hat and jacket and is writing on a clipboard.

Extra special stocktake of zoo animals begins

Staff say they were given a last-minute surprise, after a white rhino was born on New Year's Day.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

An eel arranged in a circle in a roasting tin, with herbs and oil on it. A hand is pouring the marinade over it.

Watch: How Italians in Bedford celebrated Christmas 40 years ago

Eels, a capon, and a Nativity scene taking over a living room, as seen on BBC Nationwide.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Water gushes on to a flooded railway track.

Watch: Gushing water turns railway 'into a river'

Fast-flowing water from a burst sewer main is seen pouring into a flooded railway station.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A large explosion with a enormous plume of dark smoke rising upwards into the sky

The first 999 call made after Buncefield explosion

"There's been an explosion," a woman tells a 999 operator following the blast on 11 December 2005.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Two police officers are pulling a man out of a BMW crashed into a lamppost near a red bus

BMW driver jailed after crashing into lamp-post

Cameron Saddique is handed a driving ban for more than three years following the crash in September.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Woman shouting in a front garden while a workman watches on in the background.

Watch: Neighbours row as workers dig up front lawn

Videos of the dispute are watched more than four million times after being shared on TikTok.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Two squirrels moving around inside a cylindrical drain

Family of rodents found living in drain system

Other items discovered in roadside drains around Hertfordshire include a trampoline and grenade.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A man on a mountain bike is flying through the air as he makes his way through a truck with an empty load

Watch: Mountain biker jumps through moving lorries

Organiser Red Bull says it was a "world-first" jump in which "every element had to align perfectly".

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A car is passing over a zebra crossing. It is blurred, and the people around the car are also blurred or out of focus.

Car narrowly misses pupils and lollipop woman

Drivers face penalties including points on their licence or mandatory speed awareness courses.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A lion cub chewing on a pumpkin

Lion cubs explore zoo pumpkin patch

The zoo says it is a great way to encourage their curiosity, reinforce bonds and keep them fit.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A yellow telehandler vehicle carries a dark box on a grey concrete forecourt outside of a Sainsbury's Local at nighttime

Watch: The moment gang rip cash machine from shop

Footage has shown the moment a gang used a telehandler to rip a cash machine out of a Sainsbury’s shop front.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A man wearing a grey hooded top is sat in a car, holding a steering wheel, as he is focused on the road

Ex-officer filmed speeding at 150mph on social media

The former Bedfordshire Police officer is banned from driving for 12 months.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

A grey car heads towards a red light at a roundabout. There other other vehicles around it.

Car smashed in high speed roundabout crash

A man is banned from driving after admitting to causing serious injuries by dangerous driving.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

The back of an armed police officer. He is wearing thick black clothing and is in a dimly lit corridor.

Documentary shows moment triple-murder victims found

The documentary will feature on Channel 4's 24 Hours in Police Custody on 5 and 6 October.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Filming of a street scene featuring actor Daniel Rigby in a grey suit bumping into a man in a purple cloak.

Filming for Harry Potter TV series spotted in town

Fans of the young wizard capture a scene for the upcoming HBO series being shot in Hertfordshire.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

White-on-red "no entry" roadsign in front of buildings

Archive: Village's women ban sex before bypass demo

Wives of campaigners put a clamp on their partners' sex lives ahead of a campaign for a new road.

Beds, Herts & Bucks

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