Forced rhubarb. Oatsy40 / flickr.com / 2012 / CC BY 2.0
Wakefield Festival of Rhubarb is an annual eight-day festival in Yorkshire, England.
The festival celebrates the early, forced “champagne” (pale) rhubarb that the area is known for.
It features rhubarb dishes, both savoury and sweet. There are also coach tours of the sheds in which the rhubarb is “forced” (coaxed into growing early.)
Rhubarb forcing shed in the Rhubarb Triangle, Lofthouse Gate, Wakefield, West Yorkshire. Agricultural shed on Lingwell Gate Lane. Steve F / wikimedia / 2007 / CC BY-SA 2.0
Wakefield calls itself the rhubarb capital of the UK, particularly known for its champagne rhubarb. Three towns — Wakefield, Morley and Rothwell — form what is called the “Yorkshire Rhubarb Triangle”, also known as the “Pink Triangle” after the colour of the rhubarb.
Yorkshire rhubarb triangle. Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right / wikimedia / 2014 / CC BY-SA 3.0
The festival is held starting at the end of January or the beginning of February.
It started in 1999. It used to run predictably from a Saturday to a Saturday, but departed from that in 2007. To know exactly when it is each year now, you have to check the Wakefield web site.
Forced rhubarb at Wakefield market. Monika / flickr.com / 2012 / CC BY 2.0
Wakefield Rhubarb Festival. Tim Green / flickr.com / 2014 / CC BY 2.0