The streets were crowded and the costumes were colourful at this year’s Martham Canival.

An estimated 3,000 people took part in the annual summer event, which took place in Martham last weekend.

Dozens of stalls were set up on the village green. There were competitions to find the bonniest baby and most glamourous grandmother, raffles, martial arts demonstrations and live music into Saturday evening.

On Sunday lorries, cars and pedestrians were transformed into multi-coloured carnival floats for a vibrant street parade.

With the theme of this year’s event being ‘carnival’ participants donned head-turning costumes for the procession which was led by the newly-crowned Carnival Queen.

Penny Yeates, carnival committee member, said: “It was fantastic. We had three lorries, several cars and walkers all dressed up.

“The boys from the Scouts group were dressed pirates of the Caribbean and the overall winners were the Ormsby-based Dumisani African Drumming Band.”

Four-year-old Breig Brightman of Ormsby St Margaret won the children’s fancy dress contest with his gangster costume, while Gorleston’s claire Cockerill was declared most glamorous grandmother.

At 4pm there was grand auction on the Green with prizes ranging from paintings by local artist James Stewart to 500 litres of domestic fuel and revellers soaked up the atmosphere until the carnival was closed at 5pm with a mass rendition of the national anthem.

The stalls were down on last year’s takings, but organisers said that was expected with people having less spare cash to spend.

The event still managed to raise more than �1,000 for the East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices charity and plans for an August bank holiday fundraiser are already in the pipeline.

“We do it because it raises money for good causes,” said Mrs Yeates, who has been on the committee for six years.

“We visited the Quidenham hospice, near Snetterton, and what they are doing is just wonderful.”