Cartoon festival fun begins

Shrewsbury's International Cartoon Festival kicked off last night with a lecture from cartoonist Louis Hellman.

The festival will take place in Shrewsbury all weekend with a series of activities across the town.

Radio presenter Libby Purves, one of the patrons, will be at the Bear Steps Gallery at 6pm today for the official launch. More than 40 professional cartoonists from around the UK and overseas will visit the town.

Karen Lloyd, of the Shrewsbury Civic Society, said Hellman's lecture at the Lion Hotel had been a huge success. She said: "Everybody loved it and there was so much laughter during the presentation."

Tomorrow at noon Steve Bell, the UK Political Cartoonist of the Year, will speak at the Old Market Hall and there will also be an animal antics workshop from 10.30am to 12.30pm for children aged six to 11 at the Shrewsbury Museum and Art Gallery.

From 2pm to 4pm at the Shropshire Wildlife Trust, children aged eight to 12 can create a comic strip.

For more information see www.shrewsburycartoonfestival.com