A farmers’ market at Craven Cottage

Doing markets can be great fun. Hade and I have done market stalls in Balham (Christmas market), Greenwich, and various others here and there.  We sold Hade’s handywork, and some went well and some didn’t. The problem you have is that for some of these you’re paying £60+ for your pitch, so have to shift an awful lot of stuff just to break even.  It was good fun, giving a nice ‘back to basics’ vibe, but also very stressful.  We did some markets that were freezing, some in downpours, and in the latter in particular the people stay away and the stall-holders get depressed.

Well, today was the Fulham farmers’ market, and it pissed it down. There were a few people browsing but the tables full of food told their own story.  We bought some nice bread, two giant iced buns and a bit more bread, then hot-footed it into the cafe under the Stevenage Road stand for a hot chocolate (then to the club shop, where father and son bought last season’s away kit: mine was £15 for a long sleeved version, his was £2.99, 10% off the whole thing as a S/T holder – nice).

So a nice little jaunt, but hard lines on the market stall holders. I hope Fulham didn’t charge them too much for their pitches.

A tremendous bread stall under the Putney End.

A tremendously excited small boy attempts to get a better look at a photo – I’m assuming the 1948-49 Div 2. Champions.

Takin’ it easy in Haynes Place.  If Stanley ever ends up playing for Fulham these photos will need to be in the matchday programme.  Shame his first visit to the ground was for a farmers’ market, not a game, but such are the ways of the world.