QUIRKY scarecrows will be on display in Wray as the villagers celebrate the Silver Jubilee of Wray Fair at the end of April.

The fair has become an integral part of the Wray Scarecrow Festival, one of the ‘cultural’ highlights of the Lune Valley’s calendar and this year the theme is 'anniversaries'.

And with 2012 celebrating 200 years since Charles Dickens’ birth and 100 years since the Titanic sank, there are sure to be some interesting scarecrows around the village.

Visitors are expected to flock from far and wide for the festival, which starts on Saturday, April 28, running through to Monday, May 7.

Scarecrows first cropped up at the festival from 1994 to promote the fair and have become a popular draw of crowds in their own right.

Olympic-themed scarecrows are also expected to jostle for the podium places to be crowned the best scarecrow around and Virgin Balloon Flights have generously donated a champagne balloon flight for two to the lucky overall winner.

The annual 10km road race and fell race will go ahead, as well as the village cricket match and car boot sale.

On Sunday, April 29, there will be a car boot sale and on May 6 a vintage and collectables market will be held. Meanwhile, a classic bike night rolls into Wray on Thursday, May 3.

On Bank Holiday Monday (May 7, Wray Fair will conclude the festival with the cast of The Sound of Music from Morecambe Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society as well as demonstrations of rural crafts, fairground rides, classic vehicles, children’s entertainment, rare breeds, charity and trade stalls.

* Information: www.wrayvillage.co.uk