Thousands enjoy Shropshire bank holiday fun

About 6,000 music fans poured through the gates of the Shrewsbury Folk Festival this bank holiday weekend - one of a host of events in Shropshire and Mid Wales.

The sold-out festival attracted fans from across the UK and was described as being bigger and better than ever by organiser Alan Surtees.

The event, at the County Showground, featured headline acts from around the world. Mr Surtees said: "It's been exceptional, the biggest and best yet. The attendance is the best we've ever had, because we released an extra couple of hundred tickets this year."

The festival was continuing today with Bellowhead closing the event from 4.30pm to 6pm with their main stage performance. Throughout the weekend, there have been processions, workshops, circus skills, children's entertainment, dancing and more.

Highlights have included The Afro Celt Sound System, Billy Bragg, Kristina Olsen, Dervish, Richard Shindell and Adrienne Young.

There were also Celtic tune sessions, an open mic for would-be poets, beer from county breweries, workshops with flute and whistle players, a beginners workshop for clog stepping and an all-star band featuring young players aged 12 to 25.

Ellesmere Carnival was held at the town's Cremorne Gardens on Saturday.

As well as two processions which made their way through the town there was a host of attractions to keep the whole family entertained.

The processions featured floats, dancers and musicians and at Cremorne Gardens there were stunt bike demonstrations, steel bands, dance troupes, a dog display team show and a wealth of food and drink.

Carnival-goer Dorothy Bussey said it was a huge success and the floats were "excellent".

"I think everybody enjoyed themselves," she said. "We had a shower of rain just after the first procession. In the evening it started to rain a bit before the procession but I don't think it dampened anything."

Hundreds of people also flocked into Berriew Show in Mid Wales on Saturday, which this year celebrated its 62nd staging.

It was opened by president and long-serving committee member Frank Dixon, followed by the arrival of Miss Berriew Show Megan Wilde and her attendants.

Highlights included the Wye Valley Axe Team and the Quack Pack, a comedy dog and duck herding demonstration,

Berriew Young Farmers Club was also on hand, providing an It's a Knockout style competition with the Army assault course.

Elsewhere, the Bridgnorth Food Fair and Bridgnorth Music and Arts Festival also proved to be a huge success, while in Ludlow hundreds of people also flocked to the town's two-day green festival, which featured a series of craft displays and cooking workshops.

Organiser Roger Furniss said: "The event went very well and we had more people come along than ever before."