Villagers will be turning out in their hundreds on Saturday to enjoy the fun of the 60th Bampton Great Shirt Race.

Some claim that the origins of the race can be traced back to 784 when Ethelred the Shirtless chased the burghers of Bampton through the streets in an unsuccessful attempt to clothe his nakedness.

Others say it dates from 1067 when William the Conquerer’s soldiers, stationed at Shifford, were hit by a beer drought and invented the race to pass time.

But the modern version began in 1953 when village gas man John Quick, farmer Doug Read and fishmonger Paul Bovington dreamed up the idea of a pram race through the streets to celebrate the Queen’s Coronation.

John Quick had another reason for organising the race – “to combat the dreaded influx of that new-fangled television that I’m bitterly agin”.

And so the Original Great Shirt Race was born. There were to be teams of two, both dressed in nightshirts, one sitting in a pram, wheelbarrow or another non-powered contraption and the other pushing.

They were to drink half a pint of beer (or squash for younger competitors) and change places at six pubs on the way.

The winners were to be the first through the front door of the Swan pub at the finish.

The first event started at midday on June 2, 1953, Coronation Day, with Ernie Sheppard firing his 12-bore shotgun in the air.

The winners were Harry Hampton and George Hunt, who won a four and a half-gallon barrel of ale. On that occasion, nurses from the Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, were invited to collect money for the hospital.

The race proved to be such a success that the organisers decided to make it an annual event, and raise money for the pensioners of Bampton.

And so a charity called Spajers (the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Junketing) was formed. Over the years, it has organised many village events, not only the Shirt Race, but dances, balls, quiz nights, donkey derbies, tea parties, seaside outings and much more.

Don Rouse, Shirt Race master of ceremonies, said: “The shirt race is a fantastic Oxfordshire tradition. We hope it will continue for many years to come.”

Fancy dress judging begins on Saturday at 6.45pm, followed by races for children, junior and seniors from about 7.15pm. Organisers hope to sound the village’s old fire siren, last used 40 years ago, to indicate the start and end of road closures for the event.