Undeterred by the rain, last Saturday’s Maindee festival kicked off just after noon with a parade featuring giant puppets and young musicians from the local schools.

It was impressive to see everybody come together to create a festival atmosphere with flags and home-made Olympic torches, as dashes of vibrant colour fought off the raindrops and brought smiles to bystanders on the wet pavements.

A collection of arts and crafts, food tents and dance workshops awaited many of those who reached the destination of Maindee School, not to mention an impressive array of acts on three stages encompassing music, poetry, theatre and urban sounds to accommodate all tastes.

Surreal comedy duo Mr and Mrs Clark managed to bring some sunshine to the garden tent with their medicine show as they attempted to heal the broken hearted of Newport.

Bristol –based folk rock trio Holika brought some sparkle to the proceedings with songs from their Demonstrations EP.

Lead by the charismatic Tori on vocals, some of the bands material recalled the bluesy coolness of Janis Joplin making them a festival must-see.

The tent gradually filled when Holika performed with an appreciative audience letting them reprise two numbers from earlier in their set.

Denni Dennis’ Company of Clowns was next with a skilful presentation of mime and storytelling.

The talented troupe of performers were indeed a coup for Maindee 2012 – utilising every prop they could lay their hands on as they created a production line of hilarity.

Next up was Cwmbran singer-songwriter Loren Balaam who performed tracks from her debut EP.

Even more irresistible was the arrival of Maindee headliners Rusty Shackle whose set of energetic bluegrass rock delivered fought off the rain to deliver a dose of cheer.

Finally, Rogara Khart, who combined Russian folk tune riffs with punk rock, brought the day to a climax.

Maindee 2012 lived up to its premise of delivering a broad range of talents from a variety of performers. Well done to all concerned in organising a fabulous event.