A VICTORIAN theme has been chosen for the celebration of the Queen's Golden Jubilee in Lifton next month.

The programme of events on June 4 kicks off with a service in St Mary's Church at 11am, where the bells will have been ringing since 10.30am. At 11.30am there will be refreshments at Parsonage Court and the presentation of commemorative mugs will take place at 12 noon.

At 12.30pm the Victorian dress competition begins, while lunch will be available at the Lifton Hall Hotel, where the Court House bar will be open for snacks and drinks.

The town crier will be announcing the programme of events for the afternoon at 1.30pm in Market Square.

The clock will be turned back to 1887 between 1.30pm and 3.30pm, when the local history group, dressed in Victorian costumes, will recreate some of the characters and locations in Lifton at the time of Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee.

This will take place at Market Square, Parsonage Court, the Arundell Arms and Lifton School.

A demonstration of handbell ringing will be held during the afternoon and steam engine and horse drawn carriage rides will be running too.

The steam rides will start from the top of the layby, with the carriage rides running from South Lodge.

There will be Victorian games and sports, plus street entertainment and stalls to satisfy all tastes.

At 2pm a Punch and Judy show will be held at the school and between 3.30pm and 5pm there will be a bring and share tea party at Parsonage Court. Squash, tea and cakes will be provided — tea party goers are asked to bring a plate of savoury food.

For those that still have an appetite, there will be a barbecue at the Fox and Grapes from 6pm, followed by a procession to Ashleigh to light the jubilee beacon at 9pm.

The following day, Wednesday June 5, there will be a showing of old film of Lifton and the surrounding area in the Tamar Room at the Arundell Arms, courtesy of the TSW Film Archive.

The show begins at 7.30pm.