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In Pictures: From fire festival to foam fight, the lighter side of life in 2025

A look at the some of the quirkier events the Press Association covered in the last 12 months.

By contributor Press Association Reporters
Published
Supporting image for story: In Pictures: From fire festival to foam fight, the lighter side of life in 2025
Participants take part in the annual cheese rolling at Cooper’s Hill in Brockworth, Gloucestershire (Ben Birchall/PA)

In the face of wars and worrying headlines, the wild, wacky and often just plain wonderful spirit of Britons continued to shine through over 2025.

Here is a selection of images from some of the more unusual occasions that took place throughout the country this year.

The Jarl Squad take part in the torch procession through Lerwick on the Shetland Isles during the Up Helly Aa festival
The Jarl Squad take part in the torch procession through Lerwick on the Shetland Isles during the Up Helly Aa festival. Originating in the 1880s, the festival celebrates Shetland’s Norse heritage (Jane Barlow/PA)
Participants take part in the annual cheese rolling at Cooper’s Hill in Brockworth, Gloucestershire
May also saw daring participants take part in the annual cheese rolling at Cooper’s Hill in Brockworth, Gloucestershire (Ben Birchall/PA)
The women’s cheese rolling race at Cooper’s Hill
The women’s race at Cooper’s Hill (Ben Birchall/PA)
Members of the Pentacle Drummers perform in front of a burning wicker man at the Beltain Celtic Fire Festival
Members of the Pentacle Drummers perform in front of a burning wicker man depicting a Roman Gladiator Retiarius, celebrating Beltain and the Roman festival of Floralia, during the Beltain Celtic Fire Festival in Hampshire (Andrew Matthews/PA)
A member of the Pentacle Drummers performs in front of a burning wicker man during the Beltain Celtic Fire Festival
The fire festival took place at Butser Ancient Farm, near Waterlooville in May (Andrew Matthews/PA)
A mural of former England football manager Sam Allardyce
In July a mural of former England football manager Sam Allardyce appeared in Union Street in town centre of his home town of Dudley in the West Midlands (Matthew Cooper/PA)
The annual Football In The River match in Bourton-on-the-Water
August saw two teams make a splash when they took part in the annual Football In The River match in Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire (Ben Birchall/PA)
Dachshund Nellie after crossing the finish line at Chester Racecourse's first ever Dachshund Derby
Seven dachshunds took to Chester Racecourse in September hoping to be named top dog in its first ever Dachshund Derby. Here is winner Nellie after crossing the finish line (Anthony Devlin/PA)
The traditional Raisin Monday foam fight at the University of St Andrews in Fife
The traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator’s Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife is always a messy display (Jane Barlow/PA)
Raisin Monday 2025
The foam fight is the culmination of a weekend of festivities where first years say thank you to their more senior student ‘parents’ for mentoring them (Jane Barlow/PA)
Cake artist Emma Jayne works on her life size replica of Michael Jackson
Cake artist Emma Jayne’s life-size replica of Michael Jackson was a real Thriller at the Cake International show at the NEC in Birmingham in October, just in time for Halloween (Jacob King/PA)
A giant effigy of Sir Keir Starmer
What a guy! A giant effigy of Sir Keir Starmer was revealed for the Kent town of Edenbridge’s Bonfire Night celebrations (Gareth Fuller/PA)
Two women holding up Christmas stockings
Members of the King’s Foundation Sewing Bee group took on the task of turning the curtains from Sandringham House in Norfolk into 25 stockings ahead of Christmas. The old curtains from the royal residence were recycled into festive stockings for a charity auction (Andrew Milligan/PA)
A dog takes part during the Rescue Dogs of London and Friends Christmas Jumper Parade
A dog takes part during the Rescue Dogs of London and Friends Christmas Jumper Parade, in central London (Jeff Moore/PA)