RECORD crowds turned out in force as Spennymoor Gala celebrated its 50th anniversary this weekend.

Families lined the streets in the town centre to watch as a grand procession of floats, bands and vintage vehicles passed through on its way to Jubilee Park - which was at the heart of the celebrations.

Falconry displays, battle re-enactments, stalls, music, army and emergency service demonstrations along with Culine's Family Fun Fair all added to the fun of the day.

Rugby League teams Durham Tigers and Scarborough Pirates also attracted the crowds as they battled it out late in the afternoon.

Organisers said that they could not have asked for a better way to celebrate the golden anniversary of the gala.

Main organiser John Culine, who is a town councillor and former mayor, said: "It was an absolutely fantastic day. I have never seen so many people fill the high street.

"Everybody is talking about it. It must have been ten people deep.

"We definitely had the highest records on the gate in the park itself and I don't think you could fault the floats that were in the procession.

"It has been very hard work trying to get it up to what we wanted to celebrate 50 years. We are only a small committee of people, but all of the hard work and effort has certainly paid off.''

He added that money raised from the gala would help take 500 senior citizens to the coast for a day out with a little bit of spending money.