AROUND 30,000 visitors enjoyed a packed week of events at Chalke Valley History Festival.

The festival in Broad Chalke ran throughout last week.

Festival director Jane Pleydell-Bouverie said: "We are delighted to have had such a wonderful week with outstanding speakers and living history events at the Chalke Valley History Festival.

"Despite coinciding with both National Armed Forces Weekend and Glastonbury our numbers were significantly up with around 30,000 people attending over the week.”

It featured more than 150 talks as well as discussions and topical debates, alongside a living history encampment.

Festival favourites and well-known names returning included Neil Oliver, Victoria Hislop, Dan Snow, Kate Williams, Antonia Fraser, Jacob Rees Mogg, Tracy Borman, Ben Macintyre, David Owen, Ian Hislop, Anita Anand and Niall Ferguson.

The 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings was also marked during the festival. To open the festival, there was a special D-Day 75 morning to commemorate those who fought in the Normandy campaign. A replica Hawker Typhoon was also built, which overlooked the Church Bottom site.

A new addition was the programme of living history, showcasing the age of the Anglo Saxons and Vikings, right the way through to the Second World War.