Pirates, smugglers and wenches ran riot in Wells over the weekend, just as they did 400 years ago.

The town was packed with thousands of seafaring miscreants who enjoyed gambling, live music and rum cocktails.

It was the third annual Wells Pirate Festival, an award-winning event which raises money for the Wells Maltings Project, an exciting multi-million pound venture aiming to restore, renovate and repair the town's Maltings and Sackhouse buildings and to improve the arts, heritage, youth and business facilities in Wells.

Wells Maltings Project manager Becky Jefcoate said: 'It's been going really well. The weather hasn't been great, but it would take more than a bit of cold wind to scare pirates away.

'Last year 8,000 people came to this festival and I think there have been a few more this year.

'The festival has even attracted interest from overseas.'

The festival featured a smugglers' ball on Friday evening, a pirate market throughout the weekend, parrot, art and puppet making workshops, fortune telling, a boat trip past Pirate Island, a pirate fete, sea shanties and other live performances from pirate bands and dancers, a pirate pub quiz and Blackbeard's Badtaste Badass Bingo.

Children enjoyed pirate storytelling on the Buttlands, treasure trails, a costume competition and a pirate puppet show in the Granary Theatre.

Mrs Jefcoate said: 'It's been great to see people throughout the town getting involved. There have been a lot of Captain Jacks around and all sorts of colourful costumes.

'This is the main fund-raising event of the year for the Wells Maltings Project and I expect we'll have raised more than £10,000 this year, which is fantastic.'