Should I wear a mortar-board (a square)?
Yes. The Time Ceremony requires full academic dress, and the mortar-board is an essential element of full academic dress.
Women, of course, may wear either a mortar-board or a cap.
A mortar-board should be carried indoors, and worn outdoors.
A mortar-board may, of course, be doffed in order to greet another.

Is there any connection between the Time Ceremony and Tolkien?
No, except that some Mertonians like to greet each other with the words "May a star shine on the hour of our meeting!", either in English or in Elvish.

Is there any other customary greeting?
"Good morning!"
(It is very inappropriate to say "Good evening" after midnight.)

When are the toasts?
The toasts start earlier than they used to.
The first toast is generally about 1.45 am.

Why do we walk backwards?
The standard answer is that it is not in principle necessary to walk backwards, but that walking forwards at two o'clock in the morning in full academic dress would just look silly.

How fast should I walk?
Slowly. This is a pleasant stroll amongst friends, not an effort to get somewhere. It is a journey through time, not through space, and it doesn't finish any earlier if you walk faster.
With some three hundred people present, the Quad can be very crowded, and the slower everyone walks, the more people can be fitted in.

Should I walk for the whole hour?
No.

Should I link arms?
The present generation seems to like doing so. The disadvantage is that it is difficult to carry a glass (or cup) of port with linked arms, and almost impossible to drink from one.

Do people get drunk?
That's fairly unusual. In the past, people would arrive drunk from, for example, a rugby club dinner, but nowadays such events are moved to a different day. A look at any of the photographs available on the internet will show that everyone is happy but not merry.

For medical religious or other personal reason, I do not drink port. May I drink something else?
I consulted a rabbi on this, and he recommended grape juice.

May I eat anything?
Only twiglets.

Should I twirl?
This is a matter of personal conscience and belief.
Twirling, if done, should be slow

May I bring a guest from another college?
There is no objection in principle, but for security reasons each year's JCR Committee, on behalf of the College, restricts entry to College.

What should I do between midnight and the Time Ceremony?
Religious contemplation.
Alternatively, attend (or arrange) a seminar on one of the five traditional subjects of History, Philosophy, Physiology, Science, and Lyric Poetry.

How should I approach the sundial?
Most people come straight from St. Alban's Quad. But the best views are to be had by walking round the City Wall (being particularly quiet on passing the Warden's Lodgings), and coming down the steps by the stone octagon table.

Why do we congregate round the sundial beforehand?
Where else would you start a Time Ceremony at night?

Does the mulberry tree have any significance?
Mulberry trees are naturally found near sundials. It is several hundred years old, and we should certainly pay our respects to it.
It is customary, as from 2008, to jointly toast the sundial and the mulberry tree (morus nigra, f.) with the words "O tempora! O more!"

What are the other toasts?
"To a good old time!" and "Long live the counter-revolution!"

Why does no other college have a Time Ceremony?
Yes, it's a mystery, isn't it!

B.P. 2007