Tickets to take part in a little piece of Farnham’s history are now on sale.

The Venison Dinner, held in Farnham Castle, began over 400 years ago in 1605 when bailiffs and burgesses offered a venison dinner to the townsfolk as a way of discouraging them from poaching the deer in Farnham Park. Today, the event has become a local annual tradition and an established part of the civic calendar. This year it will be held on Thursday 10 November.

Pat Frost, Chairman of the Venison Dinner organising committee says: “While we no longer have to worry about Farnham’s residents poaching deer in the park, we very much enjoy holding the historic Venison Dinner as an annual event for local people. Tickets for this, the 214th Venison Dinner, are now available so I hope couples and groups of friends will come along to enjoy what is always a very sociable evening. It’s a rather unique way to keep our local traditions alive, not to mention to dress up and enjoy a wonderful meal so I do encourage you to buy a ticket and come along, particularly if you haven’t been before.”

The evening will make the most of the atmospheric surroundings and grandeur of the Great Hall in Farnham Castle and will include many of the original customs of the first venison dinners.

The chef will bring the venison into the Great Hall of the castle accompanied by a piper in traditional dress before presenting it to the Mayor of Farnham, Councillor John Ward, who will be invited to carve the first slice.

This year’s after dinner speakers will be Lord Lieutenant Michael More-Molyneux, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey, David Munro, Sarah Squire of Squire’s Garden Centre and the Bishop of Guildford, the Rt Revd Andrew Watson.

Tickets are £60 per person, which includes a drink on arrival, a four course meal and coffee. Roast venison with all the trimmings forms the main course and a vegetarian alternative is available.

To book tickets, contact Pat Frost on 01252 728663 or Farnham Town Council on 01252 712667.