Cambridge University students prepare to celebrate their first May Ball for three years

student Cambridge University Wearing a cocktail gown and dinner jacket last night to celebrate her first May Ball for three years.

Hundreds of young men and women faced the heat to line up outside Robinson College on Friday night, eager to attend one of the most anticipated events of their social calendar.

Attendees dressed in their finest to match the Moulin Rouge theme, with tickets for the popular night going for £100 each.

This is the first time since the Covid pandemic that May Balls have been organized at the university. Previous events in 2021 and 2020 were cancelled, meaning the last events held there were in 2019.

Students, dressed in glamorous cocktail dresses and dinner jackets, stood in line for an hour in the heat as they waited to get into the ball.

A group of students make their way to the May Ball, which had a Moulin Rouge theme, at Cambridge University’s Robinson College.

Students queue outside Robinson College in front of the Moulin Rouge-themed May Ball for the first time in three years

The students dressed up in their finest for the event, with the men looking dashing in dinner jackets and the women looking fabulous in cocktail dresses.

Once inside, students were treated to live music, cabaret and magic, as well as food including headline indie acts, cavala and Sicilian sourdough pizza.

It says on their events page: ‘Cabaret, Elephant, Windmill! The theme of Robinson May Ball 2022 is Moulin Rouge!’

‘Prepare yourself for a wonderfully spectacular frenzy of colour, music and movement, all the food and food your heart desires!

‘Party all night, watch the sunrise and experience the legendary Moulin Rouge, which the varsity describes as the best value for money Balls in All Cambridge!’

One of the hosts of the Moulin Rouge-themed event welcomes a student at the entrance of Robinson College on Friday evening

Organizers said the event promised to show ‘cabarets, elephants and windmills’ to attendees on Friday night.

Celebrating the end of the academic year, attendees were promised a ‘fantastic frenzy of colour, music and movement’.

The event is one of the most popular in the college’s social calendar, with tickets worth £100 each for those wishing to join.

Alumni of Robinson, one of Cambridge’s newest colleges, include comedian Robert Webb, TV presenter Connie Huck, and former Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg.

May Balls have been held in prestigious university colleges since 1866 to mark the end of the academic year.

The tradition of May Balls in Cambridge dates back to the 1830s, with the first official being May Ball in 1866 and the third at Trinity Boat Club.

They are usually lavish affairs with ticket prices ranging from around £100 to £640 for a pair of dining stamps at Trinity.

A group of girl students being photographed outside the college. People with tickets were asked to dress up for the Moulin Rouge theme

Men and women enjoy the great weather before the ball and dress in their finest for the annual event in general

This is the first time in three years that the ball has taken place, with the Covid pandemic forcing it to be canceled in 2020 and 2021

Meanwhile, Oxford students will attend one of its Summer Balls tonight.

The Christ Church Commemoration Ball will see hundreds of students from past and present wearing white tie attire.

Organizers say the ball, which takes place every three years and is being held at the historic college, will take people into an ‘unbelievable world of spectacle and fascination’ with a La Durie theme.