MORE than 1,000 people turned up to enjoy food and live music in Bassaleg this weekend.

The Rural Bassaleg, Food, Craft and Blues Festival took place in the grounds of Graig Community Hall on Saturday.

The festival - which is a collaboration between the Ruperra Arms and Cotyledon Food and Craft Markets – saw visitors able to enjoy a feast of delights including freshly made bread, crepes and ice cream. There were also crafts from many local businesses on sale.

Head chef at the Ruperra Arms, Steve White said: “We started this around three years ago. We started it as a bit of a folk festival and I said I’d love to do stalls and that.

“The first one we did, we only had 10 stalls in the car park.

"Jan who does the rural markets (Cotyledon Food and Craft Markets) – I joined in with her. She does every last Saturday of the month here so I asked if I could join in for this one with live music and stuff like that.

“I also did a live food demonstration showcasing local Welsh produce.”

One of the stall holders, Zoe Morgan from Pettigrew Bakeries, said it was the first time she had been in Bassaleg.

“We usually do the markets in Cardiff but as our baker lives locally in Risca we thought we might as well give it a whirl," she said."It’s a nice market to be at.”

Alison Tripp – the owner of stall Bandanas and Bowties – was also attending the festival for the first time.

“I create bandanas and bow ties for dogs,” she said.

“It’s my first time at one of these markets and I’m quite nervous.

"I created my stall display out of an old dog gate and oven grates spray painted red!”

The next event hosted by the Ruperra Arms will be in August this year. For more information, visit facebook.com/Ruperra