IT may have rained all night but it did nothing to dampen the spirit of Dickensian Evening last week. Ian Taylor, chairman of Tavistock and District Chamber of Commerce, hailed this shopping highlight in the seasonal calendar as a great success.
'We were very pleased with the turnout and grateful to the assistants and judges for all their help,' he said.
'There were some splendid costumes which some people had made themselves and some had hired.'
Mr Taylor said that while the streets were not as busy as in previous years the shops did particularly well with people staying under cover longer.
'The pannier market did particularly well. Every cloud has a silver lining.'
Plymouth Sound sponsored the competition for best shop window and best dressed shop assistant. The overall winner of the Bob Hussell Memorial Trophy for the best decorated shop window went to Toddle In. They also received £500 worth of free advertising on Plymouth Sound. Gold certificates went to Batemans Opticians, Village Arcade; silver to Bill the Baker; bronze to Mayflower Galleries, Spiral Staircase; highly commended to Potters Bar, Silver Service and Knitting Image.
First prize of £100 in the Best Dressed Shop Assistant's class went to Lydia Williams with the Home Made Cake Shop coming second and Crebers third. Lawsons and Superdrug were highly commended.