Many articles have been written on the history of Callington's Honey Fair, however it seems unclear when the old fair was actually established. In 1267, Callington was granted a market charter by Henry III, when he was raising funds to rebuild Westminster Abbey. The charter gave permission for a weekly market and annual fair. It seems that the Callington Honey Fair actually became established in the latter half of the 19th century and initially occurred in August, on the nativity of the Blessed Mary. The Honey Fair continued annually until the beginning of WWII when it was discontinued.

In 1978 a local lad John Trevithick set out on his own initiative to re-establish Callington Honey Fair. The headlines of the day read "County Fair buzzes back to life, thanks to a busy bee" and here we are thirty years later still going strong and making as big a buzz as ever. John (Bard of the Gorsedd) and his wife June, were the guests of honour at the 2008 Honey Fair.

After the first successful year the fair was taken over by the Lions Club of Callington mainly because they had enough people to organise and administer such a big event. These days on average, over 100 stalls line the streets. Adding to the entertainment are a large fun fair and various street entertainers (clowns, travelling musicians etc). The late Wesley Wilton guided the fair forward and it has evolved so that the two central car parks and New Road are now used. The fair is still administered by the Lions Club of Callington and any monies raised at Honey Fair are used for Lions Charities throughout the year.

Callington Honey Fair has become one of the largest street fairs in Cornwall, with hundreds of people visiting the town to enjoy the friendly and community-based fair. In fact, Callington is the only town in Cornwall which still retains a Honey Fair.

The modern-day fair is held each year on the 1st Wednesday in October and each year has a unique theme. This same theme is used for the annual Shop Window Competition & the Children's Art Competition, which attracts entries from 11 primary schools in the region. There are normally over 900 entries. The entries are displayed in Callington Town Hall on Honey Fair Day.

The Honey Fair has its own web site which can be visited by clicking on the following link: Callington Honey Fair

Contact for Honey fair is David Jones 07875 075 755