THOUSANDS of revellers flocked to a Hampshire town for the return of an annual festival over the weekend.

The Eastleigh Unwrapped Festival was back with a vengeance and celebrating its seventh year anniversary on Saturday.

With the sun beating down people of all ages turned out to enjoy the weather filling Eastleigh Park with deckchairs and picnic blankets.

Taking place every summer, the festival is a free day of live performances produced by The Point theatre.

Running all day it featured a programme of circus, aerial, family theatre and dance, celebrating the “best in world-class” contemporary performance.

The Point’s Artistic Director Sacha Lee said: “We were thrilled about the return of Eastleigh Unwrapped for its seventh year.

“The Festival is now a firm favourite in the Hampshire calendar and brings our community together with performances to move people in the way that only live performance can

“We are proud of Eastleigh Unwrapped’s strong reputation for attracting world-class outdoor artists – and this year certainly didn’t disappoint.”

Launched in 2013, the outdoor festival was developed with the town’s community at the heart of the day.

It aims to showcase some of the work presented at the theatre but also to bring artists from further afield to Leigh Park Recreation Ground and Eastleigh town centre.

This years’ event saw the return of headline act Highly Sprung with Roots, with their “intriguing and visually stunning” displays.

Festival regulars Pif Paf were back taking families on journeys of their wildest dreams aboard their travelling machine The Flycycle.

A truly interactive experience festivalgoers had the opportunity to join in the fun and get up and dance.

Folk Dance Remixed lead festival-goers in a street dance maypole workshop, following their performance of the step-hop house, which is a “quirky and colourful” collision of maypole, clogging, ceilidh, street, African and Bollywood dance set to a live soundtrack.

Alongside the theatrical entertainment, audiences were invited to pop into The Sorting Office in the centre of town to browse and buy locally made, bespoke products from the resident creative artists.

With a busy summer schedule ahead the park is again expected to be full of people with the return of the Eastleigh Mela festival.

Organised by the Eastleigh Asian Welfare and Cultural Association (AWCA), it brings different cultures together and offers a day of family fun.