FESTIVAL bosses are promising this year's Winchester Hat Fair will be bigger, brighter and better than ever before.

Britain's longest running festival of street theatre is guaranteed to go off with a bang as it celebrates its 30th anniversary.

Every year the historic city of Winchester is shaken to life with a vibrant mix of oddball characters, breathtaking performance, international acts, unbelievable stunts and crazy clowning.

There are just weeks to go before this year's event, which takes place from July 1-4.

At the official festival launch, artistic director Jonathan Kay said: "About 30,000 people come to Hat Fair and, for me, that's a vision - seeing people enjoying themselves in the streets as a community.

"We can actually become a celebratory community and something that is known for how we do artistic things and this is the way forward as far as I can see it."

Highlights of Hat Fair 2004 include the No Fit State Circus, which is visiting Winchester as part of its national tour.

They will perform their latest show ImMortal at the North Walls Recreation Ground inside a spectacular silver and fuschia coloured tent.

A Spanish company is bringing the innovative outside dance show Mirando Al Cielo to the city. Prepare to be dazzled as 15-minute dance pieces are performed on a glass stage as the audience watches from reclining seats underneath.

Hat Fair has commissioned the World Famous Company to create a large-scale work about the maverick history of Winchester.

The pyrotechnic show will be staged on St Giles Hill and is the first of a three-part commission taking place over three consecutive years.

An exciting new feature has been added to this year's event called Inside Out Day.

The project involves representatives from the "professional" world of Winchester being invited to take part in question and answer sessions in school.

Children will be allowed to ask them any questions they like about their jobs and what they involve. Workshops will be conducted after the sessions where performance events will be devised based on what they have learnt.

The annual School's Day will return with an anticipated 1,500 children taking part in free workshops and a massive procession from 13 schools around the city.

For more information about Hat Fair, phone 01962 849841 or e-mail info@hatfair.co.uk