VISITORS and locals have enjoyed a host of Bank Holiday weekend fun across the Keighley district.

Cullingworth was overrun with heroes and villains as the village staged its popular annual scarecrow festival.

The theme was adopted by organisers of the event, staged on Saturday and yesterday, and there were more than 40 creations – in private gardens, shops and churches.

Characters ranged from Snow White and the Pink Panther to Gruffalo.

Programmes, sold in village shops for £1, included a voting slip so people could nominate their favourite scarecrow and everyone who voted was entered into a draw to win £10.

Proceeds from the event are split between Oxenhope Sue Ryder hospice Manorlands and the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

"The festival is now in its 13th year and has become a village tradition," said Rosemary Spencer, chairman of the organising committee.

"We have a lot of loyal supporters and visitors come from quite a wide area."

A minibus operated from the village hall both days to take people around Cullingworth, with passengers able to board and alight at refreshment points.

St John's and the Methodist Church provided refreshments both days and a mini craft fair took place in the village hall.

Meanwhile buckets and spades are the order of the day at Ingrow Station as a serious of summer seaside celebrations reaches its finale.

A beach has been created and youngsters can enjoy a host of traditional seafront activities including donkey rides, building sandcastles and trying their luck at winning prizes.

And ice creams are on offer.

The event, held yesterday and continuing today, was organised in a bid to engage with members of the local community and broaden the railway's appeal to different markets.

Jim Shipley, from the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway (K&WVR), said: "We had a lot of interest leading up to the event and the car park yesterday was rammed.

"The seaside celebration harks back to the days when trains would take huge numbers of people on day trips over to Morecambe, which some people used to call Bradford-on-Sea."

* for a full report and more photos, see Thursday's Keighley News