Buffy the Chicken Attracts Cheering Crowd as She Is Crowned the 'Queen' | “Only in Cinderford Could This Happen”

When we say the words "chicken" and "coronation" in the same sentence, a royal dish might come to your mind. But we definitely aren't referring to a dish, when we say that a chicken from Cinderford also had its own coronation. With the news of King Charles lll's coronation going around, a town in Gloucestershire, England might have been inspired to hold its own coronation. A large crowd of a thousand people flocked to Cinderford's Triangle to witness the crowning of its "Coronation Chicken" and attend the honorable ceremony, per BBC reports. "Is this hinting at something?" Twitter user @Alyssa_mia1990 asked mockingly and now we do wonder if it did hint at something.
Cinderford, you absolute legends.
— Rob (@Mikes_Brother) April 28, 2023
Chicken to be crowned.
Coronation. Chicken.
Buffy is a Buff-Orpington Sussex cross who is "a bit of a show-off and a bit of a poser," according to her owner. Buffy, a female chicken owned by Anne Lameraft, is one of eight in her small flock. Cinderford Town Crier, Jeremy Holland announced that Buffy would be crowned the Coronation Chicken. The chicken was crowned Queen just as King Charles III's Coronation procession leaving Westminster Abbey was shown on the big screen behind her. Mr. Holland told the crowd gathered to witness the coronation, "This is crazy, as soon as we have a celebrity chicken in the Triangle, we attract a crowd like this. Only in Cinderford could this happen." He added that the ceremony was a unique event for them and Mr. Holland, who was appointed as the Forest of Dean's first town crier following a competition run by the Cinderford Council Events Team. The position was created to rally the town to fully participate in the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022 and Mr. Holland will hold the position for life.
"Do you own a chicken and live in the Forest of Dean, for example? Cinderford town council is calling on locals to enter theirs in a competition that could see it crowned the “coronation chicken” by the mayor." https://t.co/OmnAKinr8y
— Margin Gamblin (@uistkunstist) April 29, 2023
As the chicken got crowned as the queen, the town crier, Mr. Holland yelled, "Oyez, oyez, good people of Cinderford, and all across our great nation, we gather here today for this moment of elation. For as in our capital, we crown King Charles III, right here in Cinderford, we too crown our bird. Hip hip hooray, hip hip hooray, hip hip hooray, well done Queen Buffy." This was followed by a large cheer from the rain-drenched crowd. Cllr Roger Sterry, Mayor of Cinderford said he struggled to choose a winner from the 34 chickens who applied for the position. The chicken owners were required to submit a photo of their prize bird as well as 50 words explaining why they deserved the title and the council was "inundated" with responses.
I spent the day yesterday watching a chicken get crowned in Cinderford.
— Sofia (@SofiaHartwell) May 7, 2023
Yes, you read that right.
Meet Queen Buffy 👇🏼 https://t.co/c1iVw7yrz7
Mr. Holland had this idea after hearing that during Queen Elizabeth's Silver Jubilee in 1977, a crown was placed on the head of a lone sheep wandering through town. He told the Telegraph, "After hearing that, I went home and thought 'We could do something like that - it'd be brilliant' and lots of people in Cinderford have chickens these days. The vast majority of people thought it was brilliant." Mr. Holland added, "People had really gone to town with [setting the scene] for the photo - someone had made their chicken take part in a tea party and one was sitting on cushions in a throne." After a "very formal meeting in a council chamber" six weeks before the coronation, the event received a green flag, despite the "many strange looks" Mr. Holland received. All hail Queen Buffy!