Justin, Jimmy, Sausages & Beer

Jimmy had a blast last year with his Sausage and Beer Festival, so was looking forward to the same again in 2015. Even before the gig got started, the blast arrived in the form of wet and stormy weather. A combination of soft ground and high winds on Friday night, led to a number of the campers' tents blowing down! Thankfully, as far as we can tell, only camping equipment was damaged and the weather improved remarkably on Saturday for the first day of the festival. Apart from a brief shower, we enjoyed a warm day with sunny intervals and cool beer, just as it should be. Woodfordes Brewery has a fine range of beers, certainly more than could be completed in one day.

The sausages are a speciality of Jimmy's; they were one of his first creations when he started. He took on the 100 acre farm as a lease-hold 13 years ago and he is still developing the range today. One of his latest, 'The Cambridge' was produced to celebrate the arrival of the youngest royal. Needless to say those on offer today were delicious.

Whilst eager to be at the festival, just a 15 minute drive away, the girls lacked any enthusiasm for actually getting out of the house. Thankfully, the gates opened only at 11am with the first act on stage at 12. Justin Fletcher must be well known to any child and solely thanks to him, Makaton has become much more well known and understood. As I write, I can hear the phrase 'you sign' cat, dog, or whatever is the object of the moment... He is a legend and rightly deserves his MBE.

He opened proceedings on the main stage with singing, dancing, signing and joking, after which he paraded along the front of the crowd for photo opportunities. For someone who enjoys Justin on TV so much, Master H didn't know quite what to make of him. I think he must have been starstruck!

A really well-thought out small festival, with facilities suitable for families with children of all ages, recommended!

But I can't leave without a mention for The Flying Seagull Project for their good work and childrens entertainment plus, the chosen festival charity East Anglia's Children's Hospices caring for children and families with life threatening diseases. Such a worthy cause.