Bonkers world of conkers competitions – damaged enamel, metal nut and ‘combat membership’

T’is the season for a friendly game of conkers but be careful of the extreme challengers who will do anything to win the title of Conker Champion.

The insane world of conker competitions is getting increased attention this week after accusations of cheating at the World Conker Championships (WCC) in Southwick.

The winner, and competition judge, ‘King Conker’ was found hiding a steel nut in his pocket. He denies cheating in the game with it.

But if you’re looking for a more extreme conker competition, you’ve got to head south to Peckham to find the conker competition described as ‘conkers meets fight club.’

READ MORE: Cheating scandal hits World Conker Championship as winner found with metal contraption

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The Peckham Conker Club holds an annual championship and is a violent affair resembling more of a brawl than a sporting match, with bleeding knuckles and fans screaming “kill him” as they watch.

Peckham Conker Club co-founder Chris Quigley, 48, said: “Our pitch is Battle Royale rules, which means there are no rules.”

Pietro “The Pummeler” Bert Ian has just been crowned the winner for his second year in a row.

Last year, Pietro and his competitor got their conker strings tangled up and Pietro ended up being thrown over his opponent’s shoulder and smashed his face onto the floor.

Even with two broken teeth, he kept playing and ended up winning the coveted Golden Nut, a 22-carat conker gilded in gold leaf.

This year, Pietro came back to retain his title but with two dentists friends in tow, just in case.

Quigley said: “I think Pietro’s secret weapon is he covers his nuts in super glue. We let people do anything.”

Unlike the WCC, Quigley encourages pimping your nuts and allows a range of conker enhancements, including resin filled nuts.

Martial arts moves are not ruled out either, with moves including a Gravity Strike, leaping high to come down on your opponent’s conker, Side Winder, a single or double side flip followed by a 45-degree gravity strike, and Super Chopper, a helicopter style move, are all encouraged.

Stampsies, where you stamp on fallen conkers, are also allowed at the Peckham games but not at the WCC.

The Campaign for Real Conkers organiser Keith Flett said: “If conkers are to survive as a game people played, rules and regulations need to go.”

This years Peckham championships saw well over 100 attendees, with approximately 450 players.

Peckham Conker Club has become so popular they even sell pro-conker merch, including “cellar-aged Killer Conkers” and a “Battle Pack” to help players prepare.

But not everyone is a conker fan, with Matthew (@fattmellows) on X formerly Twitter writing: “Conker this conker that. How about you conquer the challenge of getting some mates.”

The first recorded game of conkers happened on the Isle of Wight in 1848, but the WCC started in 1965 after a group of regulars at the local pub were rained off from their fishing trip and decided to start this new tradition instead.

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