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The Show

Two hours. A feast you eat with your hands, a tournament, and a cheering section you can't swap.

Stage lights at a dark venue, warm glow across the floor — **Just before house lights up.** The arena is heated, the dirt floor is freshly raked, and the sound booth is counting down.

The timed entry

You arrive at the gate at Dufferin and Castlefield. The operator does timed entry: your e-ticket shows a specific showtime, and the house opens about an hour before. Walk in through the drawbridge, pick up a paper crown colour-matched to your section (that is your knight), and queue briefly for the knighting photo if you want one — it's optional. Nobody is upset if you skip it.

The feast

Dinner comes while the pre-show is still running. The menu is fixed: tomato bisque, garlic bread, roasted chicken half, spare rib, herb potato, apple pastry, choice of soft drink. There is no cutlery. The grease napkin tucked next to the plate is the one you want. If you're squeamish about eating poultry with your fingers, this will be the longest two hours of your month.

A rustic wooden table with plates of food and candles — **The menu is fixed, served at the table.** No menu cards, no choices — tomato bisque first, then the chicken, then dessert.

Vegetarian is pasta primavera. It is honestly not their strong suit — you have to ask when you book, or by email the day before, and even then the kitchen sometimes brings the standard plate first. Vegan is harder; call ahead. Gluten-free is handled better than vegan but not as well as the standard menu.

The tournament

Lights dim. Six knights, one per section, ride in. For about forty-five minutes the pageant covers horsemanship (reining-style patterns, flag passes), weapon demonstrations (lance, mace, sword), and a scored tournament that decides the "champion" of the evening. The outcome of each night is set by the colour of your section — your knight might win Tuesday, lose Wednesday. Children generally don't notice; adults sometimes do.

Cheering sections

Six sections, six colours, one knight each. You cheer the colour you were handed at the gate. You cannot swap. If you booked as two groups of four and ended up in different colours, you'll be yelling at each other across the arena — ask the host at check-in whether a section swap is possible, sometimes it is, sometimes not.

Loud. The drum line and sound system are loud. For children under about five, bring foam ear plugs. The castle gives you a paper crown; it does not give you hearing protection.

The last twenty minutes

After the final joust the house lights come up partway, dessert is served, the "champion" is announced, and most of the audience files out within fifteen minutes. If you want a photo with your knight, hang back near your section's exit — knights usually come back out of costume for a few minutes and will stand for a picture.

The horses are the first ones in the trailer tunnel and the last ones out of the barn — don't try to pet them on the way out, the grooms are moving fast to cool them down.