Few ancient Good Friday customs still live in this area. In the city itself, however, the traditional Procession of Witness once had church choirs assembled in the Market Place and, headed by the Salvation Army Band, sang favourite hymns on the march to the Cathedral.

Down at Godshill there was another custom – rolling eggs down Good Friday Hill at Sandy Balls! Tradition has it that the egg-rolling custom started back in the 1880s. Of several suggestions as to the origin of this custom, one is that it symbolises the rolling away of the stone from the tomb, another that it is part of an old fertility rite, while a third suggests that it was a custom in which the girls took part and the one whose egg went the farthest was sure to be married before a year was out.

Many years ago the Fordingbridge girls always won because they cheated and hard-boiled their eggs while the Godshill girls used new laid eggs which soon broke against the trees!

The Good Friday egg-rolling was revived in the 1930s when the Westlake family bought the Sandy Balls estate and once again, hard-boiled and decorated eggs were rolled down Good Friday Hill - it became a Sandy Balls tradition although I must admit that I am unable to state if this custom still happens there.

Egg-rolling is also popular in other parts of the country although customs differ from place to place. The winner's egg may be the one that rolls the farthest, survives the most rolls, or is rolled between two pegs.

Since 1878, American presidents and their families have celebrated Easter Monday by hosting an 'egg roll' party. Held on the South Lawn, it is one of the oldest annual events in White House history.