Christmas Market organisers plan feast of Danish produce and 'all sorts of quirky things'

Dorthe Hostick, chair of the social fund at the Danish Church, with some of the items which will be on sale at the Scandinavian Christmas Market in Hull

East Yorkshire’s Scandinavian community is aiming to make its Christmas Market better than ever by teaming up with colleagues in London.

The one-day event, expected to attract over 800 people to Hull’s Danish Church, in Osborne Street, on Saturday November 30, has been running for nearly 60 years.

It has become more of a challenge for the organisers in recent years because of the impact of Brexit on availability of products.

This year the community in Hull is teaming up with the Danish Church in London and the Danish YWCA, which operates a big Christmas market.

Charlotte Theill, manager of Danish Church and Nordic House, said they expect to have more to offer because of their partnership with London: “Before Brexit we could just order what we wanted and it all came on a pallet from Denmark just a few days later.

"Now it takes longer and it costs more because of import duty and clearance, but by working with the Danish Church in London we can simplify some of the procedures and then just bring the products up to Hull. We’ll be selling Danish produce – cheese, chocolates, herring, pickles, gifts, decorations, Danish books. “There has always been high demand for Scandinavian design. All sorts of quirky things that you can’t find anywhere else in the local area!”

The market will also once again feature a pop-up café serving open sandwiches of salmon, prawns and herring as well as home-made fishcakes, gravlax, rye bread and a liver pate prepared by Danes to their secret recipe.

The new partnership has enabled organisers to increase stocks of salted liquorice, honey and jams including carrot, rose hip and boysenberry from Denmark and Finland. They will also offer smoked eel from Lincolnshire.

Bakkafrost in Grimsby will supply salmon from the Faroe Islands. Nordic Seafood in Louth will provide prawns for the lunch and the operators of the Kirkella trawler have donated a box of cod for the fishcakes.

Charlotte said: “We couldn’t hold the market without the help of the businesses and our volunteers – there will be about 50 here on the day running the stalls, preparing and serving the food and generally making sure everybody has a fantastic Scandinavian festive experience.”

The market is on between 10am and 4pm. Admission is £2, which includes Danish mulled wine and a festive biscuit, subject to availability.