A 1940S festival is to go ahead in Morecambe after organisers won a cash boost to stage the event.

Poulton-le-Sands will host three days of festivities thanks to a £2,800 grant from the National Lottery's Awards For All' scheme which helps local people develop or start projects.

"We wanted to bring the local community together and make it an annual event, but until we applied to the Awards for All scheme, we didn't think it would be possible to go ahead, " says festival organiser Steve Saunders.

"The money was most welcome and has enabled us to get more people involved, and because the children have no recollection of the 1940s and the bleak days of war, this will give them an insight into the times their grandparents lived through."

He adds: "The village has been left to be swamped by Morecambe and unrecognisable as a village and so we are hoping that the event will put this doomsday village back on the map."

The event, from May 24, will see revellers enjoying a 1940s dance, an all-day market and games including paintball, a bouncy castle and a marquee filled with 1940s themed stalls.

May 1, 2003 10:00