A CELEBRATION of Portland's heritage, culture and environment got off to a great start in a community-run festival for all the family.

The Spirit of Portland Festival began on Friday and will run until Sunday, August 2 with a range of events at various locations across the island.

People flocked to a Celebration of the Sea at Chesil Cove on Saturday - an event boasting music, stalls and dancing.

Town Crier Stuart Cave opened the festival with a special cry and a teddy bear picnic was also held on Friday at St John’s Hall on the island with more than 75 people taking part.

Both the family kite flying event at Portland Bill this morning (Sunday) and the Wakeham street party this afternoon were cancelled due to bad weather, but organisers didn’t let this dampen their spirits and hope to reschedule the events for this Sunday, August 2.

The festival organised by the Portland Community Partnership is part of a wider tourism strategy to raise the island's profile.

One of the organisers, Nikki Fryer, said the Celebration of the Sea event was a success and saw lots of people visit Portland.

She added: “The event saw approximately 500 people passing through Chesil Cove, which was fantastic.

“Students from IPACA sang eight sea themed songs and dressed up in a giant Chinese dragon style caterpillar costume.

“We’d like to say a massive thank you to everyone who has attended any of the festival’s events so far, and to our volunteers who have helped everything run smoothly.”

Nikki and Andy Matthews from the Portland Community Partnership also wished to thank the Masonic Hall on the island for always being on standby and available in the wet weather.

Anita Busby-Wilcocks, who attended the Celebration of the Sea event with her children, said the festival was ‘a real showcase for the island’ with ample activities for children. She added: “There’s certainly a lot for people to get involved in and it’s great that organisations from all over the island are taking part by holding themed events.”

And the fun of the festival is not over yet, with lots still on offer for families, visitors and residents.

An Archaeology dig open day will be held from 2pm at Reap Lane, Southwell on Monday while music is the main attraction in a parent and child event at IPACA on Tuesday.

Children can become seashore scavengers for the day at the Chesil Beach Centre on Wednesday while people can step back in time with a 1960s display of photos and family records at Portland Heritage Study Centre the following day.

Tastebuds can be tickled at a Portland country market in Easton this Friday while skaters will be showing off their skills at a Jam on the Rock Skatefest on Saturday.

A Southwell street party will be held from 2pm to 6pm on Saturday and Portland Museum will be throwing open their doors for free on Sunday.