MORE than 2,500 people are expected to flock to Turton Fair on Bank Holiday Monday, May 27, from 11am to 4pm.

The event, organised by the Friends of Turton Tower, includes a dog show, May Queen parade, maypole dancing, a brass band and children’s activities such as Punch and Judy, face painting and a bouncy castle.

Entry costs £3 for adults and chldren go free.

There has been a fair at Turton possibly as far back as 1333 and it can be traced to 1789 when the poet Sheldrake said that the fair was already well established and marked by a two-day holiday in the area.

By 1851, it was described as one of the most important fairs held in Lancashire.

In the early 20th-century the fair declined as the railways made trips to Blackpool, Southport and the Wirral possible. The end came in 1936 and, although there was an attempt to revive the fair in 1950s, it was not held consistently after that time.

The Friends of Turton Tower revived the fair in 2008 and it has been an annual event attracting over 2,500 visitors each year.