HOT weather, good grub and plenty of plums combined to make a recipe for festival success, according to its organisers.

Thousands packed Pershore’s streets for the 13th annual Plum Fayre on Bank Holiday Monday, taking advantage of the juicy fruit for which the town is famed.

The humble plum dominated proceedings as August heralded the town’s first ever Plum Festival organised by a committee of volunteers.

John Edgeley, organising committee chairman, said: “It’s the first festival and the fayre is a culmination of all that.

“It’s been a big success, in fact we’ve struggled to get enough buses on the park-and-ride to get people into the town.”

Another first was the return of the ancient sport of plum tossing, similar to jacks, in which two competitors repeatedly toss the five hard dried plum stones.

Each stone has markings on one side with different combinations scoring points with the highest total after 20 minutes progressing to the next match.

Legend has it the game came about when two fair maidens were competing for the attention of an eligible bachelor, going head to head for their man.

Another popular attraction was the farmers’ market in Broad Street, boasting produce from around the Vale of Evesham, including plum sausages, jams and chutneys, beautiful blooms and the finest cider.

Town centre shops stayed open for the bank holiday with many doing a brisk trade as event-goers took relief from the heat of the sun.

Many store owners had taken part in a plum-themed shopfront decoration competition with Special Occasions, in High Street, taking first prize and a handful of others highly commended.

Nearby, in the shaded greenery of St Andrew’s Gardens, plums, damsons and tomatoes were flying off stalls by the bag while there were displays of agricultural tools and body massages.

Vintage car lovers and petrol-heads were in for a treat with a car rally near the town’s medieval abbey as dozens of vehicles from Triumph TR4s to Rolls Royce silver shadows sat proudly in the sun.

The abbey hosted stalls and plenty of fun and games with a teddy bear zip-wire race and parachute competition from the top of the tower during the afternoon.

Festival committee members will now have two months off before sitting down to plan next year’s bash.