Beccles' popular beer festival will be returningto the Public Hall next weekend for the fourth year.

Featuring 30 carefully selected real ales, craft lager, cider and a perry - all from 25 breweries within 30 miles of Beccles - the festival offers something for all tastes.

The event will kick off next Friday afternoon, November 13, at 4pm, when it will be ladies' night behind the bar, with live music from headline act Dumbfoundus at 7pm – a rumbustious party band from Gorleston who will be playing an eclectic mix of covers and original material.

Waveney district councillor Graham Elliott, who has again masterminded the festival, said: 'We want the Beer Festival to be a top regional showcase for all that is best about the local brewing scene, and while we are keen that visitors sample something new, we have also responded to previous year's feedback by introducing lager, as well as making sure that old festival favourites are also on tap.'

The festival will continue from noon next Saturday and Sunday, November 14 and 15, with Murphys Lore back by popular demand on Saturday evening, playing an energetic and high spirited mix of folk, country, rock, blues and ska in their own distinctive style from 7pm.

The beer festival is also a great opportunity to visit the newly refurbished Beccles Public Hall, with its extended bar and reception and upstairs gallery, where you can get away from the crowds and relax at tables and chairs, while still being able to watch all the action downstairs.

Hot and cold snacks will also be available across the weekend, as well as soft drinks, wine and spirits from the Public Hall bar.

The festival is run by a team of volunteers, and as always is raising money for the town's much-loved lido.

Shaun Crowley, chief executive of Beccles Lido Limited, which runs the Lido and the Public Hall, said: 'Not only is the Beer Festival the lido's big fundraiser of the year, but it also brings large numbers of people into the town from all over East Anglia – which is great for the Beccles economy, with town centre pubs and restaurants in previous years all reporting one of their busiest weekends, as Beer Festival visitors sample the other delights of the town.'

Organisers are keen to stress that the festival is not just for men, and with a team of ladies taking over the bar on Friday night, they hope to attract more women to the event this year.

Beccles Beer Festival runs from 4pm to 11pm next Friday, noon to 11pm next Saturday and noon to 6pm on Sunday, when off-license sales will also be available of any left over ale.