ORGANISERS of this year's Chudfest are promising it will be 'even bigger and better'.

Chudleigh residents and visitors can look forward to an annual summer extravaganza for all ages featuring live music, arts and crafts, quiz night, comedy and literary festival.

The headline event is the Red, White and Blue Ball on Saturday featuring a meal, dancing to Soul Funktion and close-up magician Dan Brazier.

Chudfest organiser Michael McCormak said: 'The ball is not only a celebration of British summer but also a nod to American Independence and a commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo.

'We don't specify black tie as we want people to be comfortable but we do tend to see a fair number of dinner suits and long dresses.'

There will be a prize for the guest with the best interpretation of the theme and an invitation to 'dress to impress'.

The parish church is again opening its doors throughout the festival and this year the focus will be on a week-long arts and crafts exhibition featuring work by the town's artists, photographers and quilters.

On Tuesday, Jo Colwill of Cowslip Workshops Launceston will be taking patchwork and quilting.

Chudleigh Writers' Circle will be running their annual Literary Festival for three days and features some sessions tailored specifically for writers and book lovers.

There will be a 'meet the authors' supper and guest speaker for the evening on Wednesday will be writer and poet Matt Harvey.

He will be supported by Cat Lynx Raven, comedy horror writers and ghost hunters.

Through the week there will be a mixture of old favourites and new ventures including the Great Chudleigh Bake Off for cooks of all ages, the popular quiz night, community sing-along evening with local performers and guests Chudleigh Sings!

Also to watch out for is an evening of comedy with Allan Roberts and Stuart Masters, Chudleigh's Got Talent and, by popular demand, '60s and '70s disco.

For younger people, the youth centre is organising an event at the skate park including the story book tea party featuring Billy Wis, a Chudleigh Kids Talent Show and Messy Church.

The festival draws to a close with a grand summer fete on Sunday, July 12.

This year there will be some special events to mark the Battle of Waterloo.

On Thursday, there will be a recreation of the Duchess of Richmond's ball that was held on June 15, 1815, the eve of the battle and two opportunities to hear the story of Napoleon's last battle and the triumph of Wellington's victory through drama, songs, light and music.

All the Waterloo events will take place in the town hall.

Full details of the programme can be found on the Chudfest website at http://www.chudfest.co.uk">www.chudfest.co.uk