TWIRLERS of all ages from a Southampton group have celebrated a memorable milestone.

MB Twirlstars, a group of majorette twirlers, celebrated their 25th anniversary at Regents Park Community College in Millbrook.

The group was founded in 1992 at Millbrook Community School and moved to the college 15 years ago.

It’s now the only majorette troop left in Southampton.

Maria Astle, group founder, said: “The group has had its ups and downs but it’s still thriving and now we are back on top.

“It’s fantastic to celebrate the 25th anniversary and reunite my former twirlers with my current students.”

The birthday party saw past and present routines performed.

Baton twirling is thought to have started at dance festivals where performers used knives, rifles, torches and sticks. Later, military bands added a drum major to the front of the parade who would twirl a heavy mace.

As the maces became lighter and better balanced, women became involved in twirling, and majorettes were born in the late 1930s.

The majorettes became popular in the US where directors used them to boost the audience appeal of marching bands.

However, by the 1990s the popularity of twirling started to diminish, causing many troupes to disband.

As a result, the activity evolved into a competitive sport, focused on more acrobatic moves such as cartwheels and body flips.