Festival at Ferrymead draws 15,000

Press, 14 March 1977, Page 6

Festival at Ferrymead draws 15,000

More than 15,000 people poured into the Ferrymead festival, organised by members of the Bishopdale Round Table, during the week-end.

Cars crammed the roads outside while queues lined up inside to take part in other activities. Between 4000 and 5000 . visited the festival on Saturday, but more than double this number filled the Ferrymead (park yesterday. | There were people everywhere, including children (with candyfloss and elderly people who nodded over the memory of bygone days during their rides on tram or train.

“The old people love the trams, because they are reminded of the past, and young people seem to find them new and different,” said the tram conductor. People had been queuing for rides all day, she said. The military vehicles and weaspons displayed by the New Zealand Army were a source of interest for hundreds. Soldiers were kept busy answering queries, and one boy, keen to join the Army when he grows up, insisted that he knew more about a howitzer than his instructor.

There were plenty of other activities to keep the crowd amused — axemen,

■pipe bands, fire-fighting displays, and musicians were some of the highlights. A Steptoe auction on Saturday raised about $2OOO and children yesterday had the chance to down four big boxes of sweets in a monster lolly scramble. “It was a great organised shambles,” said the convener of the festival (Mr K. Peacock). He estimated that the Bishopdale Round Table had raised about $14,000 for Ferrymead. The chairman of the Ferrymead Trust (Mr S. H. Wood) was also delighted. “The Bishopdale, men have done a great job.” he said.