it's pancake day!
20/02/2026 I've updated this post with other people's pancake day posts, below!
More pancake day posts!
Happy pancake day - Nick Hayes
Panshrovecaketuesday - Evie Fae
Pancake Day - a farshad blog
Are you going home after work to have pancakes for dinner? Because I am!
My concept of pancake day is formed around some vague idea that it is designed to use up all the food you have before you fast for Lent. Because of this Easter connection I assume it's celebrated in other Christian and nominally Christian countries as well. There are a couple of fun traditions associated with Pancake Day in the UK (although I've never participated in any):
On Pancake Day, "pancake races" are held in villages and towns across the United Kingdom. The tradition is said to have originated in 1445 when a housewife from Olney, Buckinghamshire, was so busy making pancakes that she forgot the time until she heard the church bells ringing for the service. She raced out of the house to church while still carrying her frying pan and pancake, tossing it to prevent it from burning. The pancake race remains a relatively common festive tradition in the UK, especially England. Participants with frying pans race through the streets tossing pancakes into the air and catching them in the pan while running. Wikipedia
...as part of community celebration, many towns held traditional Shrove Tuesday "mob football" games, some dating as far back as the 17th century. The practice mostly died out in the 19th century after the passing of the Highway Act 1835 which banned playing football on public highways. A number of towns have maintained the tradition, including Alnwick in Northumberland (Scoring the Hales), Ashbourne in Derbyshire (called the Royal Shrovetide Football), Atherstone in Warwickshire (called simply the Atherstone Ball Game), St Columb Major in Cornwall (called Hurling the Silver Ball), and Sedgefield in County Durham (Sedgefield Ball Game).Wikipedia
The traditional British pancake is more like a crêpe, a thin flat pancake that you would eat with sugar and lemon juice. On previous pancake days, my old flatmate introduced me to the idea of going non-traditional with pancake fillings, so we had various kinds of cheese and spreads (keeping it veggie). We'll probably have a savoury and a sweet pancake course today.
Anyway, happy pancake day everyone! I haven't made any pancakes yet, so I'll include a picture of some flowers (in hopeful optimism for spring).
Some snowdrops