An event which began in the 1940s as a bit of friendly banter between friends has grown into the world's biggest food-throwing party, with around 20,000 people flinging 90,000 pounds of tomatoes. The actual 'battle' falls on the day of the town's patron saint and is the culmination of a week's build-up of festivities, including parades, feasts, fireworks and street parties. The night before the battle, the streets of the medieval centre serve up sizzling dishes with a tomato theme, a scene-setter for that which follows. Come the morning, shopkeepers have boarded up their stores by the time the trucks roll in to town, laden with ripe tomatoes. Inspectors check that everything is in order before diving for cover as the tomato-slinging begins - and continues until every last tomato has been hurled and turned to mush. Anything that moves will be pelted. Among the few simple rules is one which requires that each tomato should be squished a bit before throwing, so as to avoid injury. At the end of the event, participants adjourn to the riverside where showers are available to start the clean-up process.

Times
Battle begins 1100.