BOLTON Festival organisers are considering moving the event's dates to avoid clashing with the Bolton Show next year.

Reflecting on this year's 10 day event festival committee chairman Elizabeth Tatman said starting the festival on the August Bank Holiday weekend rather than ending on the three day weekend might save confusion.

She said: "Someone at one of the events told me they thought Bolton Festival had been cancelled because they were getting it confused with Bolton Show."

In previous years the festival has always started on the August Bank Holiday weekend and looks likely to revert to its traditional timing next year.

Luckily, the major outdoor activities planned for this year's festival managed to avoid the worst of the rain soaked summer.

History Comes Alive at Hall i' th' Wood Museum on Friday and Medieval Living Histories at Smithills Hall on Saturday and Sunday both drew good crowds.

Several new activities for this year's festival proved to be a big hit, including a children's sunflower painting competition based at the art gallery, which attracted hundreds of entries.

"We were inundated with entries and it took nearly three hours to select the best," said Mrs Tatman, who says children's painting is now set to become a regular feature of the festival.

Dozens of activities, with something for everyone, were organised under the festival "banner".

Mrs Tatman said: "It is very different to when it started in 1979."

"Then it was very much a music based festival. Now it is more a community arts festival."

The highlight of this year's festival for Mrs Tatman was the Magnificat and Nelson Mass at Bolton Parish Church, where the Festival Choir and Orchestra were given a standing ovation by a delighted audience of over 200 people.

But the festival has had its disappointments, with a planned literary dinner with author Janette Jenkins having to be cancelled due to lack of ticket sales.

Festival organisers will be reflecting on this year's events when they meet on September 28 to start planning next year's festival.

But the 2004 festival has been an inspiration for three German visitors from Bolton's twin town of Paderborn.

They hold their own cultural festival, the Liborifest, at the end of July and next year plan to theme it around the culture of Bolton!