THE Wild West came to life in a quiet corner of Worcestershire, complete with lawmen, pioneers, gamblers, bandits, bounty hunters and Indian chiefs.

With the sun blazing, visitors could be forgiven for thinking they were in the real West, rather than a field in Hanbury, near Droitwich, for the living history weekend on Saturday and Sunday.

Sipping a pint of strong liquor in the saloon was lawman Mike Day, aged 68, of Stoke Prior, ready with his Colt 45 to root out any lawless elements in the frontier town of Headstone.

At his side reclined his elegant lady wife Sandra Day, 65, dressed in the finest lace.

With a black bullhide hat, boots from Vegas and the rest put together from charity shops, Mr Day looked the genuine article, with a Wyatt Earp-style moustache to complete the ensemble.

He said the couple joined a friendly group called the Redditch Westerner when they retired, and their interest in the period snowballed from there.

Mr Day, describing some of the events he attends, said: “You can see thousands of pensioners walking around with guns and huge knives.

"You think if this happened in Worcester on a Saturday night, the police would have a field day. To be honest, to pull this off you have to be a bit of a peacock.”

Visitors had a chance to meet members of the Lincoln County Regulators, witness mock gun fights, admire Native American craftwork and see how they lived in their tepees.

They could also see the bright costumes and colours of the different tribes including Apache, Blackfoot, Sioux and Cheyenne.

Visitors were treated to the eagle dance after Alan Blackhorse upbraided spectators for driving Native Americans from their homelands.

Other attractions included owl and ferret displays.

The event was organised for the first time by Keith Shakespeare, who said he was more used to organising steam rallies but added: “We’ve tried something different this time.”