BOLTON'S Victoria Hall is marking its centenary with a riot of colour and scent next week.

The huge town centre hall is hosting its first flower festival which promises to be a spectacular mixture of blooms, pageantry and history.

Up to £5,000 is being spent on flowers for the huge displays which will depict local and national events in each decade throughout the century.

The BEN is also joining in the fun by sponsoring the 1920s, which will have the height of the cotton industry, the centenary of Samuel Crompton's death and a visit to the town by the King of Egypt represented in flowers.

Visitors to the hall on June 2, 3 and 4 will be greeted in the entrance by arrangements produced by members of Harwood and District Flower Club.

The main displays are being given plenty of space in the main hall, with special platforms erected over seats to support the huge arrangements.

The first floral masterpiece depicts Queen Victoria and the Empire and moves on to the poppies of World War I, Cotton, Flapper girls, the start of the modern education system, the Queen's Coronation, Space, the creation of Bolton Metropolitan Borough, multi-cultural Bolton, the environment and the Millennium.

There are further arrangements being placed on the main hall platform representing music, Drama and Spirituality which have formed the life of Victoria Hall since it opened.

The flower festival will be officially opened on the Friday by the Mayor of Bolton, Cllr Alan Wilkinson, following three days of hard work by a team of arrangers led by Edgworth expert Sandra Isherwood.

At the end of the festival the public will have a chance to buy the flowers on display.

There is an admission charge of £1, refreshments will be served and visitors will be entertained by musicians including pupils from Smithills School and Bolton Music Centre.