All kinds of success for flower festival

The colour, attention to detail, elegance and sheer artistry of displays have made this an annual event to look forward to. This was the 21st year of the flower festival and was themed around the 1970 Eurovision winner All Kinds Of Everything - a gesture which was rewarded by the singer Dana who sent her special greetings and thanks to the team.

The lyrics of the song were reflected in the floral displays themselves - for instance "All Kinds of Everything" was an artfully arranged melange of many items, from seeded bread to glossy fruit and vegetables, shells and eggs.

Early Morning Dew was interpreted as white blooms with frosty cobwebs against grass while City sights, Neon lights was an explosion of bright pink, red and yellow flowers like fireworks next to Big Ben. There were many highlights to marvel over in the display, such as the tiny flowers arranged as a box of chocolates and elsewhere a crescent moon made up of creamy angel's breath.

All of the flowers were arranged by Joan Turnwell and Sue Parkinson.

The Flower Festival is organised by the Ladies Supper Club of Christchurch and every year the money made from it is donated to a chosen charity.

Church treasurer Barry Turnwell commented: "We have had an excellent response - I think because we have been going for 21 years that a lot of the people come year after year, but I have met a number of new people that have come as well. It is super, really - very good.

"Joan and Sue did the flowers and a lot of planning goes into the festival over many months. Getting the theme is not necessarily easy and they never repeat anying, but they had the thought of this song which can be interpreted in many ways. I think it is in the detail where you can see a lot of the inspiration they had...for instance if you look at All Kinds Of Everything, there is such a lot in it, with the wall hanging behind it, and the more you stand and look, the more you see. It is all about the little things you see in the flowers and the arrangements.

"The whole weekend is put together by members of the Ladies Supper Club, which is part of our church. They bring the whole weekend together which includes all the refreshments and stalls, games, flowers and the whole thing. It is all done on a rota system so everything is done at the appropriate time - plus they get quite a bit of help from other church members, who contribute in so many different ways. It is like a big team effort of the church. It is a team - we are a big family really, and we all get on well. We enjoy the festival as we enjoy other things. There is a family feel to it which is good."