Ringwood Festival

From the archive, first published Monday 18th Jul 2005.

SUMMERTIME fun spread through the New Forest this weekend as crowds flocked to festivals staged in the region.

Former Grand Prix commentator Murray Walker came out of retirement to get the first ever Fordingbridge Festival off to a roaring start.

Mr Walker who lives at nearby Sandleheath, was taken on a tour of the show at Fordingbridge recreation ground, with an early pit stop at the Friends of Fordingbridge Surgery stand - an organisation of which he is a patron.

Crowds were kept amused by dozens of stands including one from the New Forest Bee-keepers' Association where volunteers taught children how to make wax candles secured with bee pins.

Youngsters also enjoyed leaping around on a bouncy pirate galleon.

Cathy Godber of the Visitor Information Centre said: "This whole idea came from the Tourism Group and it just sort of grew.

"Because there wasn't a Fordingbridge Show they felt they wanted to do something and it seems to have done all right. There are a lot of people here."

Meanwhile, charities were the big winners as the sun beamed down on Ringwood Festival. The event held on Saturday gave good causes the chance to pull in the crowds with numerous stalls set out in Market Place.

Tombola, bric-a-brac stalls, bottle stalls and raffles all provided plenty of amusement for visitors to the town while entertainment was provided by Punch and Judy, the Urban Explorers, a pith-helmeted team of Victorian adventurers from Forest Forge Theatre and the Kings Korner Jazz Band.