Summer had arrived, the sun was shining, school holidays had begun and it was time to have fun at the fair.

The young and not-so-young are seen enjoying themselves at the week-long Nichols’ fair at Littlemore, Oxford, in 1961.

It attracted large numbers of fairgoers, not only from Littlemore but from Oxford and many neighbouring villages.

READ MORE: Pedestrians concerned about outdoor seating

When an Oxford Mail reporter and photographer arrived one night, there was hardly room to move, despite heavy rain.

The biggest attractions were “the dodgems, fast roundabouts and the two bingo stands which were crowded all evening”.

There were fears that the increasing popularity of television would affect attendances, but organiser Bill Nichols said that was not the case - the fair had become a “family outing”.

Among the many teenagers at the fair that night were Brian Lawson, 15, and his friends, John Howells, 17, and Graham Collett, 16.

Brian was particularly pleased to be out in the fresh air, telling the Mail: “I much prefer the fair to television.”

One surprise came at the ‘Penny on a Plate’ stall which was being run by Robert Rawlins, aged just nine. He had been left in charge for the night by his mum.

Robert said business had been “rather bad really” and blamed the bad weather.

Apart from the dodgems, the fair that year also featured the Sky Rocket and a boxing tournament.

The fair in Littlemore was not as big as St Giles’ Fair, which is scheduled to take place this year on September 9 and 10 - the Monday and Tuesday following the first Sunday after St Giles’ Day.

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning. 

You can also read his weekly Traffic and Transport newsletter.