LANCASHIRE Day in Nelson on Saturday was hit by wind and rain - but it got better and better as the day went on and itself became a hit!
By the Christmas lights switch-on at 6 p.m., the weather was much better and hundreds of people turned up and enjoyed themselves.
Wet weather is typical of Lancashire and somehow seems appropriate for the red rose day. But it did mean numbers were pretty low at the launch by Mayor of Pendle Coun. Nadeem Ahmed.
There was entertainment throughout the day, including Granny Turismo, the Britannia Coconutters, poetry from Colne and District Writers’ Circle and actors from Pendle Borderline Theatre Company, Barnoldswick acoustic band Tom and Giz and Nelson Brass Band.
There was a prize-giving for dialect translators, a tour of Nelson Town Hall, and Nelson Library hosted events to trace your family history and factory life in Nelson
One of the most popular attractions was ice-skating at a rink in the town centre’s new amphitheatre, next to The Shuttle.
Throughout the day, the host for the event was Pendle tourism chief Vaughan Jones.
There were various stalls including samples from the Titanic Museum, Colne.
In the later part of the afternoon there was a surprise visit by local band Queen and Country, and they played modern and traditional Christmas songs.
Queen and Country member Hannah Nicholson was a backing singer for chart topper Ellie Goulding at the recent royal wedding after-party at Buckingham Palace. Hannah, a former student at Nelson and Colne College, performed backing vocals in front of the elite royal guests including the newly-wed Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
The Granny Turismo amazed people when they turned up as angels at the lights switch-on.
The Mayor then led a countdown with hundreds of people before launching the switch-on, and the lights in the heart of Nelson delighted the public. Nelson Brass played for another half hour before the day finally ended.