SPICY food and horse-racing fun made for a great evening of entertainment on Sunday when local bed-and breakfast owners held a fundraising event in aid of Malvern Hills Food Bank.

The event at Welland Village Hall was run by the Malvern Bed and Breakfast Consortium along with the food bank, and raised a grand total of £830.

The evening began with a meal of hot curries followed by a huge choice of puds. The punters were then primed and ready for the racing event.

The “jockeys”, members of the fund-raising teams plus some innocent bystanders, rode hand-picked, highly-trained hobby-horses.

Wearing an array of gorgeous hats, they paraded before each of the races, allowing punters to place bets, and then “raced” by moving from mat to mat according to numbers thrown on a giant dice.

Dot Haynes, one of the organisers, said: "The strict rules determined by The Jockey Club were not necessarily maintained but despite one fall in the hurdles, there were no disqualifications or broken limbs.

"A great deal of hard work and commitment by members of both groups went into making an evening that was not only great fun, but also one that resulted in more funds to help local people in crisis."