Speech in sign language opens ancient oyster event

Colchester Mayor Lesley Scott-Boutell raised a toast to King Charles III during Friday's event

A mayor said she was turning a 484-year-old tradition on its head with a speech using sign language.

It was delivered during the annual Colchester Oyster Fisheries by a representative of the Royal Association for Deaf People, and spoken in English by an interpreter.

Mayor Lesley Scott-Boutell, who describes herself as severely deaf, hoped it would challenge prejudice by making people "stop and think".

The first oysters of the season were lifted from waters off Mersea Island at Friday's event after the reading of an ancient tongue-twister and a toast to the King.

Ms Scott-Boutell committed to breaking down barriers when she became the 191st mayor of Colchester in May.

"People prejudge and they could make assumptions about you before you even speak to them and that can be really unfortunate, so I'm challenging people's preconceptions," she said.

Dignitaries gathered on a sailing barge to mark the opening of Colchester's Oyster Fisheries

During her mayoral year, she is fundraising for the Royal Association for Deaf People, the digestive system research charity Guts UK, Colchester Pride, Support our Paras, and the RSPCA’s local branch.

"I just think it's so important because I love all our differences," she said on a sailing barge on Pyefleet Creek.

She said it was "absolutely fabulous" and "such a privilege" to tuck into the first Colchester oyster of the season.

"It's a part of our culture and our heritage so it's really important that we continue to celebrate."

Colchester oysters are believed to have been harvested in waters near Mersea Island since the Roman era.

The mayor raised a toast to King Charles III at the event, which also included the drinking of gin and eating of gingerbread.

The tradition dates back to 1540.