Photo © ECC

Cricket lined up alongside a host of other classic British pastimes including welly wanging, tossing the caber and, er, Jack Russell (the dog rather than the Gloucestershire wicket keeper) racing at what has become a 'must' on Hamburg's social calendar - British Day ñ on 30-31 August.

'Cult status', 'Quintessential Britain in the heart of Hamburg' and 'Zwanglose Atmosphere' are just some of the media headlines describing this fun-filled Fest for all the family, which celebrates the best of British culture, food, music and entertainment.

The two-day fundraising event, organised by the British Chamber of Commerce in Hamburg and run by the non-profit making organisation British Day eV, has generated considerable sums of money for local charities over the years, and includes events to take part in and watch, plus plenty of food, beer and Pimms to sample along the way.

Photo © ECC

The highlight of the weekend is the open-air Final night of the Proms concert, where flag-waving, picnicking under the stars and wonderful classical music provide an electric atmosphere not to be missed.

This year, the Norddeutsche Cricket Verband, in the form of Alster CC, decided to get in on the act by organising a Twenty20 tournament, also involving Oldenburger CC, Kieler CC and Buxtehuder CC, to run over the course of the 2-day event.

Photo © ECC

Everyone involved in the tournament enjoyed themselves immensely, with participants and spectators enjoying the fast pace and excitement of the Twenty20 format.

And with over 20,000 visitors attending the show, many of whom tried their hand at cricket in the net provided by Alster CC, the event proved to be an excellent opportunity to promote the game in this part of Germany.

As a result, further discussions have already taken place, and British Day organiser Peter Rogers has offered the Deutscher Cricket Bund a tent to house an exhibition stand and plenty of space for matches, demonstrations and nets for next year's event.