RICHARD BATSON A swarm of Beetles will head to a Norfolk stately home later this month - as Volkswagen enthusiasts from all over the country show-off their prized vehicles.

RICHARD BATSON

A swarm of Beetles will head to a Norfolk stately home later this month - as Volkswagen enthusiasts from all over the country show-off their prized vehicles.

VW Whitenoise is the biggest Volkswagen event in East Anglia, drawing 3,000 visitors and cars ranging from classic Beetles and campers to beach buggies and Porsche sports cars.

Since its humble beginnings, with 300 people at Wroxham Football Club five years ago, the festival-style event has outgrown a series of venues, and this year decided to also add a touch of class, with Wolterton Hall, near Aylsham, providing an impressive backdrop to the event from June 29 to July 1.

Some of the entertainment on tap will provide some firsts for the country house, owned by Lord and Lady Walpole.

For there are graffiti sessions with visiting artists painting on boards, and sometimes on camper vans which are between paint jobs.

And music includes dance tents reverberating to the sounds of funky house from Freeform and a mixture of ska and calypso from Original Timeless Hi Fi. Fifteen live bands are headlined by Monkey Spanner on the Friday night and The Marvelous on Saturday.

But the stars are the cars - and they will be going on a cruise for the first time, heading off at noon on Saturday to Cromer's cliff top car park.

On Sunday they will be buffed up back at the hall for the Show 'n' Shine awards with prizes for the best air-cooled, water-cooled, quirky and "ratty" vehicles along with a "visitors' choice" accolade.

Visitors were coming from as far afield as Germany, as well as all over the UK, including a large contingent from Sheffield, said co-founder Lucy Haughey.

Tickets are £17.50 for a weekend pass, or £6 for day passes, with under-15s free. Gates open at noon on Friday and 9am both weekend days. Information and tickets are available on the website www.vwwhitenoise.com or by calling 01206 576697.