WINCHESTER Cathedral Close was a riot of colour in celebration of National Flower Arranging Day on Friday.

The National Association of Flower Arrangement Society (NAFAS) aimed to spread some love by encouraging its 60,000 members to distribute ‘Lonely Bouquets’ as a gesture of goodwill.

This year’s bouquets were made from flowers donated by members of the Wessex and Jersey Area of NAFAS.

More than 250 bouquets in jam jars were arranged on the ground in the shape of a ‘W’ before being given away to passing members of the public.

The Lonely Bouquets’ new owners are encouraged to post a message back to NAFAS, to let them know the blooms have found a good home.

The spectacle was created in anticipation of Winchester Cathedral’s Flower Festival, Illumination: A Festival of Flowers, (September 5-9).

This year’s festival takes its inspiration from the Winchester Bible, the largest surviving 12th-century English Bible.

The Romanesque illuminated manuscript, produced in Winchester between 1160 and 1175, may still be seen at the Cathedral Library, its home for more than 800 years.

The Lonely Bouquets’ new owners were encouraged to use social media to post a message back to NAFAS, to let them know the blooms had found a good home.