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Every spring, Cooper’s Hill, in the quiet village of Brockworth, Gloucestershire, transforms from a peaceful grassy slope into the chaotic setting for one of the UK’s most beloved traditions: a cheese-rolling race. 

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Believed to date back 500 years, with written records from as early as 1826, the Gloucestershire cheese-rolling competition is one of England’s oldest and most eccentric events. A 9lb (4kg) wheel of double Gloucester cheese is launched from the top of the hill, and dozens of competitors from all over the world hurl themselves after it.

Stand at the top and peer down the 600ft (183m) drop, often muddy and always uneven, and the risk becomes very clear. This isn’t just a sport but a tradition with bruises. 

Left: A large group of people gather at the top of Coopers Hill in Gloucestershire, England to watch the 2025 cheese rolling race. Right: Byron Smith, wearing a red top, holds his winning cheese wheel in hand while being interviewed by BBC.
Left: Crowds eagerly await the racegoers' descent down Cooper’s Hill. Right: Byron Smith, from New Zealand, holds his winning cheese wheel while being interviewed for BBC News after the 2025 race. Rupert Allen, Millie Evans
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Left: A woman claps and cheers watching the cheese rolling event. Right: Men begin to slide down the grassy hill, kicking up dirt and grass as they tumble.
Left: Onlookers join in chants and applause. Right: Participants slide and tumble down the hill sporting costumes and unique attire. Rupert Allen

Crowds pack the edges of the hill, lining makeshift barriers and climbing trees for a better view. At the bottom, medics wait with stretchers. Some contestants come prepared in athletic wear; others arrive in cheese hats and costumes. Most tumble more than they run – their limbs flailing in the face of gravity. The cheese itself often bounces out of sight within seconds, becoming more symbolic than attainable.

Men fall and tumble down the grassy hill as onlookers watch behind a makeshift orange fence.
The first race of the 2025 Cooper’s Hill cheese-rolling competition, with Tom Kopke in the lead. Daisy-Mai Crossman
Clockwise from top left: A man covered in red paint from head to toe flips and falls down the hill. A large group of people look towards the camera and past it, watching participants fall after the cheese. A large group of women take their turn running, falling and tripping down the grassy hill.
Clockwise from top left: Covered in red paint from head to toe, a competitor plunges toward the finish line. Spectators watch participants tumble after the cheese. In the women's event, female participants slide and flip in pursuit of the cheese. Millie Evans, Rupert Allen

Despite safety concerns and official attempts to halt or regulate it, the cheese-rolling event remains unsanctioned but unstoppable. There is no cash prize and no trophy. Just the wheel of cheese and a story told in scraped knees and aching muscles. It’s fast, unfiltered and completely unforgettable.

Clockwise from top: A large group of men and women look towards and past the camera with concerned looks on their faces. Women at the starting line, chasing the rolling cheese down the hill, with their hair flying as they begin the race. A woman with auburn hair holds up her winning 8lb wheel of cheese, wrapped with red and blue seals.
Clockwise from top: Onlookers express concern as a participant requires medical attention. Ava Sender-Logan, who won the women's race, proudly displays her scrapes and wheel of cheese. One woman stands tall amid a sea of rolling participants. Rupert Allen, Millie Evans, Daisy-Mai Crossman
Two men tumble on a grassy hill. The man on the rights legs flip above his head as he kicks up grass and dirt.
During the second leg of the men's race, two competitors kick up grass and dirt as they roll down the course. Millie Evans
Gloucestershire, England. May 2025.
Winner Tom Kopke lifts a wheel of cheese in celebration. Daisy-Mai Crossman

This project was produced in collaboration with the University of Gloucestershire, including photographers Rupert Allen, Daisy-Mai Crossman, and Millie Evans.

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