People in Bawdeswell, near Dereham, have been paying tribute to the liner Titanic with a series of events to mark the 100th anniversary of the tragedy today.

Villagers designated the day as Titanic Day and activities took place in the village hall.

It was organised by Bawdeswell Activities Group (BAG) and it raised money towards plans to build a new village hall.

BAG committee member David Cockburn said: 'We thought it would be a fun way to involve the community in the project.

'I think there continues to be so much interest in the Titanic because of some of the amazing individual stories about people on the ship and the theories about what happened that continue to come out of the woodwork.'

The day began with a minute's silence for the 1,514 people who died on the Titanic and the playing of Nearer, My God, To Thee, believed to be the last song the band played as the ship went under water.

There was a Titanic exhibition, a Titanic breakfast, run by Bawdeswell Activities Group Youth (BAGY) to raise funds for improvements to the village play area and Bawdeswell Village Cinema put on two films for free, A Night To Remember, a 1958 interpretation of the tragic events, and the 1997 Hollywood blockbuster Titanic.

Much of the work on the new village hall project was done by Bawdeswell resident Phil Hague, who died of a heart attack last year.

About �16,000 has been raised and it is estimated that �650,000 will be needed.

Grant applications are to be sent off and it is hoped that work could start next year.