ORGANISERS of the 35th annual West Dorset Vintage Rally in West Bay were forced to cancel the second day of their event because of the weather.

Organiser Sue Thompson said Saturday had been lovely with a very successful auction and streams of visitors.

But with the weather dreadful on Sunday the organising committee took the decision at 8.30am to cancel the event.

Mrs Thompson said: “It was absolutely excellent on Saturday but we had to cancel Sunday. We made the decision because it looked like it wasn’t going to stop all day.

“It is very disappointing, it takes a lot of organising.

“We can organise everything but we can’t organise the weather.”

The committee has not yet had time to count the cost of cancelling.

Others events over the weekend included the Broadwindsor fun day and the Bridport Musicathon.

Broadwindsor went global for the event on Saturday, which also included the annual scarecrow competition.

The green was packed with people and attractions, which had a global village theme – from a human fruit machine to musicians and games.

Andrew Hookings, chairman of Broadwindsor Jubilee Group, which organises the event said: “We had a very busy day.

“We don’t know how much we raised yet.

“It’s more of a fun thing than a fundraiser but any profit will be split between village causes.”

Winners of the scarecrow competition were John and Donna Heys, with their Working Mother, Africa entry and the Newell family with Abba.

Bridport United Church’s musicathon saw 150 performers take to the stage.

Organiser Jo O’Farrell said it was a rewarding day with a steady stream of visitors.

Money is still being counted but it looks certain the target of £1,000 for Julia’s House and the Richard Ely Trust for Young Musicians will be exceeded, she said.

“It all went very well,” she added. “We had 150 performers with all the choirs and bands and all sorts of music from classical to jazz folk, skiffle and musical theatre, even comedy.

“There were seven or eight instrumental and vocal music teachers involved and they encouraged a lot of their students to take part which we were particularly pleased about because it is not just about raising the money, it’s about giving them a platform as they don’t get many opportunities to play in front of an audience.

“We were really pleased at the number of people who came and nobody played to an empty house.”