27-02-2025
Cambridge college cancels May Ball for ‘inclusive' alternative
A Cambridge University college has cancelled its May Ball in favour of a 'more accessible and inclusive event'.
Robinson College, which was founded in 1977 and is Cambridge's newest college, said it had called off its traditional May Ball and scheduled an 'alternative event' to appeal to more students.
The college will instead hold a 'mega bop' in June, with tickets available to all Cambridge undergraduates and at much cheaper prices. The event will retain the 'film noir' theme that had been picked for the ball.
A statement posted on the Robinson May Ball committee's social media said it had 'made the decision to hold a more inclusive and accessible event to ensure as many Robinson students as possible can enjoy a fantastic May week celebration'.
It is thought that the move was prompted by low ticket sales amid increased living costs for students, which have squeezed Robinson's events budget.
It marks the second time that the Cambridge college has had to cancel its May Ball for financial reasons, after the 2019 event was called off because of poor ticket sales.
A spokesman for the college committee told the Varsity student newspaper: 'Rising costs have been affecting all balls in recent years, as have lower ticket sales. We therefore took the decision to change our event to a more accessible one at this point to ensure we could organise the best possible alternative.'
Cambridge's May Balls, which can cost as much as £270 a ticket, are usually elaborate and lavish affairs held at the end of the academic year.
The formal events are hosted by Cambridge's constituent colleges and often require black or even white tie. Dating back to the 1830s, the balls are thought to have grown from celebrations linked to May Bumps – a set of rowing races held annually on the River Cam.
In recent years, several Cambridge colleges have begun to host smaller events in June either in addition to their formal May Balls or as cheaper alternatives.
Some Robinson students criticised the decision to cancel the formal ball, with one writing on the Facebook page for the event: 'Sacrificing a proper May Ball doesn't make sense. There should just be proper mechanisms in place for accessible tickets, with support from the college.
'Robinson's always been one of the university's cheapest balls and ditching it will actually mean many students won't be able to access a May Ball at all.'
Max Harvey, a former May Ball treasurer, said there was 'no assistance from the college' for the events, meaning that 'achieving adequate ticket prices is always difficult'.
He said: 'The decision to not hold a full May Ball this year will not have been taken lightly by the committee and most likely the decision will have been heavily encouraged by the college based upon ticket sales in previous years.'
