ONE of the most popular events on the Minehead calendar, the CAMRA Real Ale and Cider Festival will not be coming to West Somerset Railway next year.

The announcement comes after negotiations between CAMRA and WSR broke down over how the 2016 festival would be run.

West Somerset Railway general manager Paul Conibeare said: "We have met with CAMRA and proposed that the festival become a bolt-on event, like many of our others, with a marquee outside the station.

"The event is so successful that it has outgrown the platform and there are more people than we can safely hold, however CAMRA decided not to go forward with this arrangement."

Mr Conibeare added that if CAMRA wished to look at alternative locations near the station WSR were happy to support the event.

A spokesman for Somerset CAMRA said: "With great sadness there is a need to report that there will be no more CAMRA festivals held on the West Somerset Railway.

"The WSR will in future be one of the few heritage railways in the UK without such an event.

"Our festival had for some time been widely considered as market leader by fans of real steam and real ale.

"It seems several alternative options were tabled during the negotiations with WSR Plc but an agreement between the Railway and Somerset CAMRA could not reached."

The two-day event, which has been running for 16 years, attracted thousands of people to Minehead Railway Station, where they could enjoy live music, a wide selection of ales and drink them on the carriages.