THOUSANDS of people are expected to flock to Taunton for this weekend's Somerfest.

The town will host a range of activities and events during the fun day on Saturday, from 11am to 5pm.

Clubs and charities from around Somerset will be represented at the midsummer celebration by the River Tone.

There will be choral societies, arts and crafts groups, dance companies, musicians and performers, all coming together to celebrate our wonderful county.

As well as taking place beside the river, the fun will also be featured in Goodland Gardens, on Castle Green, in the Orchard Shopping Centre and the High Street.

Among the many highlights is the Great Somerset Duck Race, with a brood of ten thousand sponsored plastic birds bobbing along the water.

The ducks will be launched from The Bridge in the centre of the town and, helped on by the flow of the river, will swim downstream to win prizes for their sponsors.

The race is organised to raise funds for Cancer Research UK.

You don't have to take your own duck along - if you haven't got one you'll be able to take your pick of hundreds of them lined up on the river bank.

A spokesman for the Somerfest organisers said: "The festival grows each year and this year will be part of the excitement of the ICC Cricket World Cup that is coming to Taunton.

"With national and local musicians and performers, this promises to be a great day out."

All the Somerfest activities are free to attend.

It is commissioned by the recetly formed Somerset West and Taunton Council and is a legacy event started in 2012 with the Cultural Olympics.

Somerfest has been organised by Fuse Somerset Outdoor Arts and receives funding from Arts Council England.