Around 70 people have taken part in the UK's annual Wife Carrying Race in Dorking. Ian Giles, the UK race director, said it was 'certainly chaotic' and added there were a few familiar faces each year. For the 2026 race, Mr Giles said there were 35 couples set to compete with 15 on a waiting list. Race organisers believe wife carrying began more than twelve centuries ago in 793AD when Viking raiders ransacked the island of Lindisfarne off the north-east coast of England. Wife carrying continued intermittently for around 300 years before the UK Wife Carrying Race began in 2008.

Source: Daily Mail March 09, 2026 08:41 UTC