Stevenage Day is celebrating its diamond anniversary this year – with an estimated 30,000 people expected to attend.
It has been 60 years since the free event was first held, and organisers are gearing up for an extra special occasion for the 2019 edition - which takes place on King George V Playing Fields on Sunday, June 9.
There will be more than 200 stalls and a range of fun free activities for the whole family to enjoy at the day-long event, organised by Stevenage Borough Council with the help of recording studio @The Practice Roomz.
Activities include inflatable horse riding, a birds of prey exhibit, a petting zoo, a mountain bike freestyle exhibition, famous costumes characters, a beach area, inflatable rides, electric go carts, Junk Drumming and circus attractions. A
New for 2019 will be a gaming pod stocked with the latest games and consoles where you and your friends can compete with each other.
There will also be a great selection of food available, including Asian cuisine, German sausages, fish and chips, crepes, specialist coffee, a burger bar, cup-cakes, old fashioned sweets, candy floss ice cream and artisan baked bread. Refreshment options include a cocktail bar and a 1960s Routemaster bus bar.
Running alongside Stevenage Day, which is being sponsored by Mulalley, is annual community music festival Rock in the Park.
This year the stage will be headlined by Wrong Jovi and will also feature some of the best musical talent Stevenage has to offer.
More than 150 bands applied this year alone, with only a small number able to be selected to play.
To complete the line-up there will be a 'battle of the bands' competition over three nights at Flava Bar, where a panel of judges including a North Herts FM DJ and the Practice Roomz's Owner Kriss Lawrence will decide which band gets the last slot.
Organisers promise the festival - free and suitable for all ages - will feature a set list crammed full of sing-along anthems, live favourites and rarities.
For more information about Stevenage Day visit www.stevenage.gov.uk/about-stevenage/stevenage-day or follow the council's hashtag #StevenageDay60 on social media.
Did you go to the first Stevenage Day in 1959? Send your memories and pictures to news@thecomet.net.
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