WINCHESTER Cathedral will host a double celebration this year as the Hampshire Harvest Festival coincides with the centenary of the death of William Walker, the famous diver who saved the cathedral ‘with his own hands’.

Now a firm fixture in the cathedral’s diary, the Hampshire Harvest weekend from October 6-7 will again celebrate the county’s rich agricultural heritage and local produce.

The festival features independent Hampshire producers and members of Hampshire Fare, and provides an insight into one of the most important aspects of the county’s economy.

A wide range of displays and activities will be on offer for people of all ages.

Visitors can take a ride on a horse-drawn carriage or climb onto vintage farm machinery, watch a falconry display, find out about bee-keeping, listen to the fairground organs or learn about the work of the Bat Society.

As well as the agricultural stalls, there will be a variety of foods on offer celebrating Hampshire fayre including, new for this year, a vintage food van offering hot food, cakes, scones, tea, and even a glass of fizz.

The festival is supported by the NFU, Country Landowners’ Association, Sparsholt College, and Hampshire Fare.

“We are delighted to be working again with the agricultural community of the county,” said the Very Reverend Catherine Ogle, Dean of the Winchester.

“Harvest Festival is a long-established tradition in the church but one which we are keen to refresh to reflect the realities of agricultural and farming life in our county today. We want to celebrate the harvest and bless God for it, but also raise awareness of what is fair and sustainable.”

William Walker the Diver (or Diver Bill, as he is popularly known) is something of a hero in Winchester. For anyone unfamiliar with his story, he led a team of divers between 1906 and 1911 to dig out the rotten foundations of the east end of the cathedral and underpin the area with more than 25,000 bags of concrete, 115,000 concrete blocks and 900,000 bricks. Often working for hours in muddy water and wearing the heavy and cumbersome diving suit and helmet in use at the time, this was no mean feat.

His contribution to the cathedral’s history will be celebrated with an exhibition about his work and a selection of items associated with the story. There will also be a service of commemoration on Saturday, October 6, attended by a number of members of William Walker’s family.

And all of this is part of the cathedral’s own traditional opportunity to give thanks for ‘All God’s gifts around us’, with the Cathedral Harvest Festival Service on the Sunday at 10am and the County Harvest Service at 3.30pm that afternoon.