THE 50th annual Germansweek Cancer Bazaar took place last weekend — and it raised a record total!

The bazaar has stalls for bric-a-brac, clothing, plants, and more. Organisers sold draw tickets to help swell the coffers to a fantastic £1,800.

Jean Smithers, one of the organisers, said: 'It was a fantastic day, with lots of people attending and helping out.

'I'm rather tired now as we all put an awful lot of effort in, but it was worth it. We normally raise between £500 and £700 so the extra hard work has paid off this year.'

After the bazaar was over, around ten of the original fundraisers from the first bazaar 50 years ago enjoyed a cream tea and a slice of birthday cake together to commemorate the growing success of the event.

The fundraising began in 1960 when the late Betty Prout was diagnosed with breast cancer. Following successful treatment she held her first coffee morning to raise money for cancer charities.

Since then Betty's coffee mornings have grown into the annual bazaar that has raised money for a number of charities, including CLIC Sargent, the Children's Hospice South West and FORCE.

The goods that were not sold on the day were donated to FORCE to maximise the amount raised by donations.

Jean expressed thanks to everyone who helped sell draw tickets, worked on the stalls, donated goods, attended the bazaar and helped make the day such a success.