Anster Fair, A Poem in Six Cantos (1812), By William Tennent

Set in the Medieval Scotland of James V. Anster Fair is a comic poem of magic and romance and tells the story of Maggie Lauder, a rich heiress from the Fife coastal town of Anstruther. Maggie is beautiful and the subject of many suitors and admirers. One day she decides its time she found herself a husband but did not know what was the best way to choose. She encounters a Fairy called Puck who suggests she organise a competition at the next market fair, in which all the admirers can display their skills and win her hand. From all over Scotland, suitors arrive, and in the presence of James V and his Royal Court the suitors take part in a range of competitions; a donkey race, a sack race, a piping competition, and a reciting of stories. One popular competitor is Rob the Ranter, a laird from the borders who has his own connection with the world of magic and the infamous Wizard, Michael Scott, and as the story unfolds it is learned that the paths of Maggie and Rob have been laid by Puck and his wife who have both been trapped by the cruel Wizard. In seeking to win their escape they need the help of Maggie and Rob.
William Tennent was a Scottish poet and scholar (1784-1848) born in Anstruther East, Fife. It was his knowledge of Italian verse and structure that gave William the ability to compose his first published work, Anster Fair (1812), a mock-heroic, humorous poem with classical aspirations, covering the marriage of Maggie Lauder. It was in the style of ottava rima, a verse form made up of eight lines in iambic pentameter with the rhyme scheme abababcc. This style was the first adopted by a British writer, and it would gain good reviews with six editions appearing in his lifetime. The poem is in the English language using the spelling of the time and with many Scots words included.