VISITORS flocked to Weardale for a dazzling new festival which featured some of the finest mineral specimens in the country.

The first Weardale Festival celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Friends of Killhope's annual Grand Mineralogical Exhibition on Saturday and Sunday.

The festival was held simultaneously at Killhope, the North of England Lead Mining Museum, Ireshopeburn Institute and the Weardale Museum.

Maureen Murray, visitor services officer at Killhope, said the event had attracted visitors from around the country.

She said the event had been very well attended, especially considering the latest foot-and-mouth exclusion zone borders the museum.

She added: "Visitors have come from far and wide because we've had some world class minerals.

"We are gaining a reputation in the mineral world and the specimens are so good they wouldn't look out of place in a national collection. They're fantastic and very rare."

A feature of the festival was free vintage bus transport, provided by Newton Aycliffe and District Bus Preservation Society, so visitors could explore all three venues. The bus features regularly in popular television series Heartbeat.

Mrs Murray added: "The bus went down very well. It's not just been used by visitors from afar, but by locals as well and it's been lovely to see them." The mineral exhibition also incorporated a competition, judged by expert Brian Young of the British Geological Survey.

Joint first place went to Trevor Bridges of Tynedale and Dave Barker of South Yorkshire, with Helen Wilkinson and Barry Smith, both from Weardale, finishing joint third.

The children's prize went jointly to Rosie and Dalia Orrell of Nenthead in Cumbria.