ORGANISERS of the Teesside Steel Family Gala are preparing for this weekend's event.

The gala is one of the biggest summer attractions on Teesside, but was cancelled last year when the venue, Kirkleatham Showground near Redcar, flooded and there was heavy rain on the day.

This year, organisers are hoping the heatwave will continue into the weekend so that the event, at Redcar Rugby Club, will be a success.

The big names appearing at the gala include The Kangaroos Gymnastics Display team and the RAF parachute free fall team from RAF Lossiemouth, in Scotland.

Other attractions include the Mega Minis stunt show, West Lancashire dog display team, a wild west show and a comedy double act.

The TFM radio roadshow will be making its debut appearance at the gala, providing music throughout the day.

But the highlight is expected to be a float procession by ten Teesside schools, which have teamed up with Corus on Teesside to design and build the floats.

Themes include The Little Shop of Horrors and Disney's 101 Dalmatians.

The procession will start at 11.30am, from the Majuba Road car park, and travel along the Esplanade, then the Coast road to Green Lane, before arriving at the rugby club for the judging.

The gala is aimed at everyone, and costs £3 for adults and £1.50 for children and senior citizens.