Friends on the Market

One of the great joys of being a market trader is the bond you form with the people around you. You endure all the weather that the British climate can throw at you together, from torrential rain to hail and everything in between. You also get to know the wonderfully colourful characters who seem to gravitate naturally towards market life.

Alongside the inevitable challenges of braving the elements, we have also been on a very long journey with plans to renovate and improve the marketplace. Sometimes I’m honestly not sure whether standing in a hailstorm and a Force 6 gale is preferable to yet another liaison meeting!

Over the years, I have made some very good friends among my fellow traders. My mum always used to say that people only tease you if they like you, so I must be very well liked indeed!

I have long been a supporter of Cambridge Market. When I was a Councillor, I championed the market and its importance to the city. A few years later, as Chaplain to the marketplace with Great St Mary’s Church, I became even more closely involved with market life. It was also around this time that I started trading myself, with my own stall.

The market has become part of my weekly routine in other ways too. I love buying my flowers from Cambridge Market, something I have done for many years — first from Adam’s stall and later from Phil at Peter Graves Florist.

For me, the market is about much more than simply buying and selling. It is about the people, the friendships, the characters, the traditions and the sense of community that make it such a special part of Cambridge.