THE village green in Broadway was packed with people celebrating midsummer last week.

The fourth annual event, organised by Broadway Traders' Association, was designed to give something back to the community and more than 1,500 turned up last Friday for a night of music, magic and entertain-ment.

Organiser Richard Pinder said the weather played a strong part in the success of the event, which made a loss last year because heavy rain lowered the attendance.

He said Ready Steady Go played 70s and 80s music, which was very popular, and young local band Zilch, which has a 12-year-old drummer, made a big impression.

Andrew Riley, who used to own the Broadway Hotel, and Barry Hancox, former manager at The Lygon Arms, gave the audience a preview of what to expect at their new hotel and restaurant on the Gordon Russell site when they put on smoked salmon and champagne.

Mr Pinder said: "It was highly successful. Everyone looks forward to this now so it will definitely be on Broadway's calendar in future years."