JESTERS, stilt walkers and a Chinese dragon will parade along Bolton's Churchgate in a tide of colour this Bank Holiday.

A series of events take place this weekend as part of this year's Bolton Festival, culminating in "Down Our Street" - a celebration of last year's transformation of Churchgate.

A Chinese dragon - courtesy of The Chinese Buffet, in Bolton's Bridge Street - will roar down the street at noon on Bank Holiday Monday, followed by open air entertainment including stilt walkers, mime artists Rintintin and strolling musicians.

Visitors who work up a hunger can try Jamaican cuisine at Ye Old Man and Scythe pub, while there will also be street entertainment from Activate Octagon Youth Theatre and music from a 15-piece jazz band. The weekend's fun starts tomorrow with the return of the traditional charity market in Victoria Square, running from 10am to 4pm.

Meanwhile, the weekend's other big event will be "In the Spotlight", an event involving the screening of a specially commissioned film starring comedians Dave Spikey and Stu Francis in Victoria Square between 1pm and 5pm on Sunday.

Bolton Council's executive member for development, Cllr Ebrahim Adia, said: "Bolton Festival is an important and established event in the calendar but the addition of the Churchgate celebration will provide a unique opportunity to mark this important achievement in the continuing regeneration of Bolton town centre."