Shropshire Star

Ironbridge witch faces spell on ground at regatta

The witch of the Ironbridge Gorge is making a "return" to her old haunts as part of the Ironbridge Coracle Regatta on Bank Holiday Monday - but does not yet have permission to fly.

Published
The original witch flies over the Iron Bridge

The witch will hark back to a caper of around 60 years ago when legendary coracle maker Harry Rogers and mechanically-minded Jack Gears of Dawley rigged up a line across the River Severn at Ironbridge and "flew" a witch figure across.

And the regatta celebrations will also feature on display recreations of some of the other mechanical marvels which were crafted by the men of the river in those days, including a wheelbarrow man and a floating raft with two men hammering.

The regatta is at Ironbridge Rowing Club at Dale End Park on August 27 from noon to 4pm. The modern replicas of the witch and the working wooden figures have been a project between the Ironbridge Coracle Trust, a group of people interested in the coracle heritage of the Gorge, and the social and hobby group Men in Sheds.

Graham Peet of the trust said: “As part of the research into the use of coracles in the Gorge we rediscovered much of the contents of the old coracle shed.

"Apart from many tools, the shed contained some of the wooden figurines that the coracle men used to fly across the river. When the work on stabilising the old shed is completed, we hope to fly the figurines across the river once again.

"We are very keen to talk to any Ironbridge people who remember the figurines being flown across the river so we can get the story right.

"Since the original figurines are now museum pieces, the Men in Sheds have been making duplicates. We are delighted to have the chance to work alongside these incredibly talented craftsmen to keep these local traditions alive.

"There were at least two witches. The small one we found was hanging in the shed as seen in photos. I don’t think it would have flown. We have made a large copy of that witch. But there seem to be one or even two more. We are keen to talk to as many people as possible to discuss it.”

Terry Kenny of Men In Sheds said: “In such a high-speed, hi-tech age, it can be easy to forget the kind of magic we can create using simple materials. We’ve had great fun working on these models."

The old coracle shed in Ironbridge was used by famed coracle maker Eustace Rogers, and built by his father Harry, and the witch and figurines were kept there. After Eusty's death the contents were sold to a collector, but the trust has bought them from him and returned them to Ironbridge for analysis and conservation.

The trust plans to display some of the items in a free coracle heritage centre.

Although the witch does not have permission to "fly" at the Bank Holiday event and will instead be on display along with the other models, the trust hopes to fly her across the river at future events.

The date of the flight of the original witch has not been confirmed but one account has it that Harry and Jack came up with the stunt as an alternative "attraction" to mark the Coalbrookdale Company's 250th anniversary in 1959.

The pair rigged up a high wire for the witch on her broomstick and a model unicyclist.

Among other working models crafted around that time was a small boat model being rowed by a figure, and a floating gadget with two men hammering.