S: Hi, I’m Steph 

A: and I’m Andrew.

It’s time for a new mini portion of Norfolk festiveness.

Let’s GOBBLE and CLICK about turkeys.

S: Click?

A: Yes! If we were turkeys, with our own little turkey Podcast, me being the male turkey would ‘gobble’ and you, the lady turkey would ‘click’. Interesting that!

Now, if we whisked our way back to the 1570s, we would have seen that the centre for British turkey breeding was firmly established in Norfolk… and ‘Suffolk’...

Why? - Because here is Norfolk we had a history of poultry rearing and an abundance of buckwheat and turnips, both ideal food crops for the turkeys to eat.

S: It's true. Two renowned turkeys here in Norfolk are:

The Norfolk Black - the oldest turkey breed in the UK. Now, the Black turkey originated in Europe and is believed to have evolved from South American turkeys that had been imported in the early 1500s.

It is most likely that it first arrived in Spain from where it was eventually taken to England. Farmers in East Anglia, most notably Norfolk, were very interested in keeping these domesticated birds for their fine meat and that is how the Norfolk Black turkey came to have its name.

A: We also have the Norfolk Bronze. This is arguably the finest example of turkey in the WORLD. Bronzes began as their Norfolk Black turkey cousins, but were selectively bred with American wild turkeys to create the larger, shimmering Bronze.

The key Norfolk turkey producers include:

• Great Grove Poultry, which is a traditional family run farm.
• Godwick Turkeys, a family-run farm that has been supplying great tasting, succulent Christmas turkeys for over 50 years.
• Peele’s Norfolk Black Turkeys - they’re celebrating a remarkable milestone in 2025, 145 years. Founded in 1880 at Rookery Farm, it has been in the same family for generations. They were also instrumental in saving the Norfolk Black from extinction. 
• Darrow Green Farm.
• And, Morton’s Family Farm - four generations of farming heritage producing delicious, free-range and outdoor-reared bronze turkeys.

We cannot leave the list without a mention of Bernard Matthews and their Bootiful Golden Norfolk Turkeys.

S: One tradition that is now not replicated today, is the driving of turkeys from East Anglia to London, known in some towns along the route as the ‘Turkey Trot’. Back in the late 17th Century, turkeys were beginning to gain in popularity in London. So, to maximise sales, the farmers of Norfolk and Suffolk used to march their birds the 100 miles plus to markets in the capital.

1,000 of turkeys could be managed by only two drovers, but progress was slow. Turkeys walk at about one mile an hour, so the first flocks had to set off in August!

This caused traffic jams - presumably stagecoaches / horses - and took around three months.

Around the 1720s, a quarter of a million turkeys walked this route! It was hard on the birds’ feet, so the turkeys were shod with little leather boots.

A: FACT TIME! Did you know listeners? Like other turkeys, the Norfolk Black's bare skin on its head and neck changes color (between red, white, and blue) depending on its mood or level of excitement.

S: A mood turkey. Love it.

If you have any comments or memories about Norfolk Turkeys, please drop us an email start@enjoyingnorfolk.co.uk.