If you went down to the park you were sure to have a great time

Wilmslow was certainly the place to be this weekend with lots going on for all people of all ages, including two events organised by Wilmslow Town Council which attracted over 3,000 local residents, families and friends to the Carrs park.

The festivities kicked off on Saturday night with Wilmslow's inaugural outdoor cinema event which attracted over 1000 people and has been hailed a big success.

Thankfully the rain stopped about 5pm and the sun made an appearance as friends and families gathered with their deckchairs, rugs and picnics to enjoy a 45 minute set from the 80 strong Magic Voices choir, directed by Mike Bramhall, before a screening of the Mamma Mia movie.

Town Clerk Matthew Jackson said "The Town Council were delighted by the turnout at the first Cinema on the Carrs event. A thousand residents created a great atmosphere in the arena and were richly entertained by Magic Voices Choir before the sun finally came out and the film began.

"It was great to see so many people dancing and appearing to have a great time. We will now await feedback from the public before considering the future of this concept."

Local retired businessman, John Mills, who had previously chaired the 2013 Wilmslow Music Festival, helped to plan and deliver the weekend festivities.

Matthew Jackson commented "It was John who came up with idea of the outdoor cinema, we had actually started discussing increasing the music element of the weekend, little did we know how successful his idea it would be."

John said "The weather was kind despite the day setting off with heavy drizzle and showers. We did our best to try and create an authentic outdoor movie experience for the audience, even down to producing an Advertisement Reel to play before the movie with special thanks to Catherine Mackenzie at Mackenzie Marketing who produced the 'Pearl & Dean' inspired ads."

John added "From an organisational point of view we all felt it had gone well but we think there are one or two things we can improve upon if we were to repeat the event. What we particularly liked was that there were people there of all ages, from babies in push chairs to grandmas & granddads, lots of family groups. We tried to select a movie which would appeal to a broad cross section of the community and I think we did."

The following day, it is estimated that 2000 people gathered in the park for Party on the Carrs, another free community event with bouncy castles and trampolines, raffles, community stalls, a bar and food court.

There were also live performances on the main stage from Alan Burton, Liam McClair, Drew Selby, Lost in the Mist, the Oakmere Singers and Alderley and Wilmslow Musical Theatre Company.

Additionally people were entertained by performances from the Adlington Morris Men and the Cheshire Police Corps of Drums.

The first ever Wilmslow Community Awards, organised by the Wilmslow Business Group were launched at the event and people brought along 251 teddy bears to participate in the Rotary Club's attempt on the Teddy Bear's Picnic World Record.

Rotarian Geoff Skelmerdine said "We have broken a record in a way, not a UK record or a world record but a record for Wilmslow for the most bears having a party in the park in one day - and maybe we do it again next year with more cabaret."

Matthew wanted to place on record how much he appreciated the help he received from local community groups to deliver the whole weekend, with special thanks to the 1st Dean Row Guides, who acted as hostesses, 'song-sheet' distributors and litter pickers on Saturday evening, the Dean Row Rotarians for their car parking and marshalling skills on Sunday, and the councillors and other willing volunteers who all contributed to both events.

The weekend also saw the wonderful Wilmslow Artisan Market take place on Saturday, 20th June, with over 120 of the finest artisans, a street food arena and entertainment throughout the day, and the start of the fabulous Wilmslow Scarecrow Festival. Do keep your eye out for the amazing straw creations which can be found in shop windows, high on the rooftops and lurking in hidden corners.