AFTER a hugely successful first week the Penarth Summer Festival is gearing up for its grand finale this weekend.

The 49th annual summer festival was officially launched by Penarth Town Mayor Martin Turner with the opening of the Cliff Top Artists open-air exhibition last Thursday, July 10.

The ever-present Cliff Top Artists will be exhibiting their work until the end of the festival on Sunday, July 20.

As well as the Cliff Top Artists there have also been a wide range of events to keep local residents entertained.

Performances from Hazel’s School of Dance, Streetz, have all been successful. Razzle Dazzle Theatre Group, who opened the events at The Paget Rooms with ‘The Wizard of Oz’, was incredibly well praised, as well as a Murder Mystery evening from PODS.

One of the big new events this year was the ‘Open Studios Trail’ where participants were given a map to a trail which took them to a range of incredibly talented local artists whose work was available to view or buy on the day.

Other popular events so far have included the extremely well attended Arty Monkey Children’s Day which provided a wide range of activities for children as well as raising a fantastic £235 for the Anaphylaxis Campaign.

The ever-popular Music in The Park event, featuring a performance from Britain’s Got Talent star Jodi Bird, also impressed with hundreds praising the organisers through social media.

There is still a lot yet to come with Carnival Day sure to be an amazing day for the whole family with Donkey Rides, RAF Displays, The Sailing Regatta, Water Ski displays and a BMX stunt team all listed in the bill.

The BRO Radio team will also presenting on the day and introducing an array of fantastic bands and artists. There will also be a family fun morning located on Upper Glebe Street with food stalls, a bouncy castle and the Tenovus ManVan and Choir in attendance.

A free double-decker bus will be available on the day to take people around the town/esplanade to different events. The bus will be customised with the summer festival logo so if you see it, simply hale and ride.

The Parade will assemble in the grounds of West House and will leave at 1.30pm. The route will go down Stanwell Road to the town centre roundabout, Windsor Terrace, Beach Road and onto the Esplanade. Carnival Day activities will continue until the traditional firework display at 10pm.

One of the big events on the last day of the festival is the GPG food festival on Sunday, July 20, from 11am – 4pm at Kymin House, Beach Road.

The popular food festival promises a vast selection of mouth-watering treats whilst celebrating local and sustainable food and introducing many excellent food producers in and around Penarth. The festival will also include live music, a children’s play tent and pedal powered smoothies.

Festival organiser Keri Hutchings said “We are incredibly excited about this year’s carnival day and we hope to see as many of you there as possible.

"There are lots of events not to be missed so if you haven’t yet got your free Summer Festival programme, there are still a few left at West House and there are some available in various shops and restaurants around the town."