Romsey is set to host its own Dickensian Day celebration this weekend.
A host of festivities are planned on Saturday, December 15, to mark the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens’s birth.
The celebration, which is the brainchild of Test Valley Mayor, Dorothy Baverstock, will feature Christmas carols, a traditional merry-go-round and Punch and Judy shows.
At King John’s House there will be a special Dickens trail, a a chance to try out Victorian crafts, plus demonstrations by Morris dancers, mummers and handbell ringers.
Chris Amery and Paul Gardener will begiving readings from Dickens novels and there will be an exhibition on Dickensian Romsey.
The festivities are also being backed by Mayor of Romsey, Mark Cooper.
The Hundred will be closed to traffic between 10am until 4pm on the day, with carol singers set to perform in The Hundred and Market Place.
Mrs Baverstock said: “The traditional Victorian Christmas is remembered mainly because of Charles Dickens’s writing, and the Town Mayor and I want to bring some of that traditional Christmas magic to Romsey.”
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