The Competition to find the Prince and Princess of Accrington Carnival took place at Oswaldtwistle Mills in the Hungry Tackler restaurant on Saturday June 10th. Out of eighteen Princess hopefuls, a final eight were picked and each asked more questions. Ten-year-old Isobela Grace Kozlowski of Clayton-le- Moors  was eventually chosen as Carnival Princess and runner-up was Rebecca Aspinall from Oswaldtwistle, who will now accompany the Princess as attendee at the event.

There were less entries for Carnival Prince and it was won by Ellis Chamberlain from Accrington with Carlson Bates of Clayton-le-Moors filing the role of attendee to the Prince.

It was an early start for all the applicants who had to be at the venue all spruced up by 9 a.m. Carnival Queen, Helen Trickett was unable to take her place on the judges panel and was replaced by runner-up Katie Trickett, who is not related. Katie was accompanied by four other judges including the retiring Carnival Princess, Ellie Walsh.

Hosts for the competition were Father Anthony of Holy Trinity Church, Oswaldtwistle and John Dacks from Big Fun Promotions who entertained everyone with his balloon modelling skills.

Each contestant was given  a bag of sweets courtesy of Oswaldtwistle Mills and a rosette provided by Rosettes Direct.

The Prince and Princess winners were given prizes consisting of  a suit each for Carnival Day provided by Winstanley’s Formal Wear and a dress from Just4 Kidz, tiaras courtesy of Julie@Barbara Kay Shoes and accessories, Oswaldtwistle Mills vouchers and a Hair and Pamper Session from Jake Alexander at J2A Hair & Beauty.

The Carnival Committee would like to Thank all the children who participated and extend an invitation to be part of this year’s Carnival Procession which takes place on Sunday 25th June  and starts at 12 noon at Thorneyholme Road before proceeding down Whalley Road, Abbey Street, Blackburn Road, Church Street, Wellington Street and then the fun starts at Oakhill Park  until 6.30pm. This includes  Fairground rides, Live Music, Wrestling ring, Mascot Race and a whole lot more.

© Peter Jones 2017. All pictures including the one on the front page of the website are by Gary Britland Photography.