Hundreds of people have flocked to watch competitors battle to knock Yorkshire puddings off a 20ft plinth with black pudding in a quirky northern tradition.<br /><br />The annual World Black Pudding Throwing Championships is taking place in Ramsbottom, Bury, today (Sun).<br /><br />The event is said to have been inspired by a 1455 battle in Stubbins, Lancs., during the War of the Roses, fought by the House of Lancaster and the House of York. <br /><br />The two sides are said to have run out of ammunition during the bloody rivalry so resorted to throwing food at each other.<br /><br />Legend has it that combatants from Lancashire picked up local delicacy black pudding, while Yorkshire puddings were used by their rivals from the white rose county.<br /><br />The event was revived in the 1980s and now sees thousands flock to the market town to battle it out for the world champion crown.<br /><br />Competitors hurl the local delicacy onto a 20ft-high plinth in a bid to dislodge a dozen Yorkshire puddings.<br /><br />Participants stand on a golden grid in the town centre and have three attempts to knock down as many as possible with their underarm throws.<br /><br />Previous competitions have been won by competitors from as far away as Turkey and Australia.
