Hundreds of Cestrians and tourists lined the streets of Chester to catch a glimpse of an annual parade which dates back hundreds of years.

The Summer Watch was first held in 1498 and was originally performed by the City Guilds at Midsummer.

It was disbanded in the 1670s before being revived in 1989, and has been an annual fixture ever since.

This year’s parade lit up city centre streets on both Saturday and Sunday.

Starting from Town Hall Square, the parade featured schoolchildren dressed as a wide range of weird and wonderful characters.

The dazzling costumes had been put together workshops run by Hoole artist Russell Kirk.

Children from Boughton Heath Primary School dressed as green men, Dee Point Primary in Blacon carried suns, Belgrave Primary, Westminster Park and Kelsall Primary created a shoal of fish, Mill View Primary, Upton, pupils became pirates, Cherry Grove Primary, Boughton, dressed as angels and Chester Blue Coat Primary School were unicorns.

UCF School in Chester joined the parade as elephants while Hoole Primary and St Werburgh’s and St Columba’s, also Hoole, were geese. 

Newton Primary dressed as a flock of ravens and Upton Westlea Primary were fiery monsters.

There were a number of city centre road closures in place for the parade which wound its way through St Werburgh Street, Eastgate Street, Bridge Street, Pepper Street, St John Street and Eastgate Street, before returning to the Town Hall for a finale via Northgate Street.