MORE than 800 people flocked to Porlock Hill for the first ever Samphire music festival.

The weekend featured great music, food, drink and activities, all on a spectacular Exmoor backdrop.

The Gazette caught up with organiser Flora Blathwayt to find out how the inaugural event went.

"We had just over 800 people turn out for the festival, as well as 150 staff, traders and performers. The weather stayed bright and it was quite breezy but spirits were high," Flora said.

"Bristol-based 12-piece afrobeat band No Go Stop really stole the show on the Friday night. Then on the Saturday one of the more surreal highlights saw Violet Skies serenading a man dressed in a banana suit!"

Other highlights included a fantastic set from Crinkle Cuts and Saturday headliners Will and the People got everyone dancing.

"The festival has a very friendly and happy vibe, exactly as we wanted, with all ages having a great time together," Flora added.

"There was also a really nice buzz around the village with locals saying it was nice to see more youngsters in Porlock, plus local businesses Clive Downs, Cost Cutters and Piggy in the Middle restaurant have all indicated they did well over the weekend."

So what has it been like organising a festival for the first time?

"We are totally knackered! The whole process from conception to curation has been immensely hard work," Flora said.

"It is not just a case of booking some tents, bands and a sound system. There are so many hoops which you have to jump through to make sure it is a safe event.

"That includes getting a traffic management plan in place, booking fire engines, emergency lighting, steward shift patterns, what to do with waste water... I could go on and on!

"But it was all totally worth it when we saw people boogieing away and enjoying themselves throughout the weekend."