Man devours 58 feet of STINGING NETTLES to become world champion as female winner, 67, dips leaves in CIDER to make munching them easier
- Tony Jeyes devoured 29 2ft-long stems to take title at the Bottle Inn pub in the village of Marshwood, Dorset
- Mr Jeyes was joined in winners’ category by Lindy Rogers, 68, who ate 46ft of nettles to take women’s title
- Ms Rogers, 67, only entered contest at last minute but method of dipping nettles into cider proved a winner
- The nettle-eating record stands at a phenomenal 104ft and is held by three-time winner Phil Throme
- Competition started in 1997 after two farmers had a bet over who had longest nettles, loser had to eat a stem
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A new world stinging nettle champion has been declared after one hungry participant ate 58ft of the painful plant.
Tony Jeyes devoured 29 2ft-long stems to take the title and was one of dozens of competitors to take part in the annual event, held at the Bottle Inn pub in the village of Marshwood, Dorset.
Mr Jeyes was joined in the winner category by Lindy Rogers, 67, who took the women’s title after eating 46ft of nettles.
A new world stinging nettle champion has been declared after one hungry participant ate 58ft of the painful plant
Tony Jeyes devoured 29 2ft-long stems to take the title and was one of dozens of competitors to take part in the annual event, held at the Bottle Inn pub in the village of Marshwood, Dorset
Ms Rogers, 67, had only entered the eccentric contest at the last minute but her method of dipping nettles into cider before eating them proved a winner.
She told the Mirror: ‘I had a nice glass of pear and apple cider which I dunked the rolled up leaves into to make them more moist and easier to go down.
‘I am thrilled to have won. My tongue is black today but I feel fine.’
Competitors have to endure itching lips, a swollen tongue, a mouth stained black by the nettles’ high iron content, and burning hands from the plants’ sting.
Mr Jeyes was joined in the winner category by Lindy Rogers, 68, who took the women’s title after eating 46ft of nettles
Ms Rogers, 67, had only entered the eccentric contest at the last minute but her method of dipping nettles into cider before eating them proved a winner
Ms Rogers said after her victory:’I had a nice glass of pear and apple cider which I dunked the rolled up leaves into to make them more moist and easier to go down. ‘I am thrilled to have won. My tongue is black today but I feel fine.’ Above: Ms Rogers with the men’s winner Mr Jeyes
The nettle-eating record stands at a phenomenal 104ft and is held by three-time winner Phil Throme, who did not take part this year
This year’s event was the 23rd in the competition’s history, which started in 1997 after two farmers had a bet over who had the longest nettles
Pauline Brookes, the landlady of the Bottle Inn, said the first-time participants who took part were all ‘very brave’
The brave contestants had to endure itching lips, a swelling tongue, a mouth stained black and burning hands caused by the nettles’ sting
Ear, nose and throat specialist Michael Wareing told The Times: ‘Nettles have tiny hairs that inject various chemicals into your skin, mostly histamine. The body responds by producing tissue fluid as an inflammatory response’
Contestants tongues are turned black by the high iron content of nettles. And if they aren’t chewed properly, they can scrape competitors’ throats and affect their breathing
The nettle-eating record stands at a phenomenal 104ft and is held by three-time winner Phil Throme, who did not take part this year.
This year’s event was the 23rd in the competition’s history, which started in 1997 after two farmers had a bet over who had the longest nettles.
The loser had to eat a whole stem.
Pauline Brookes, the landlady of the Bottle Inn, said the first-time participants who took part were all ‘very brave’.
She added: ‘The weather was lovely and we had a brilliant turn our of competitors and spectators.’