HUNDREDS of real ale enthusiasts have been flocking to the 24th Ipswich Beer Festival at the town's Corn Exchange.

HUNDREDS of real ale enthusiasts have been flocking to the 24th Ipswich Beer Festival at the town's Corn Exchange.

This year there are more than 200 beers on offer - with about 150 on sale at any one time.

The festival has a War of the Roses theme, with the emphasis on beers from independent breweries in Yorkshire and Lancashire as well as more familiar local brews from East Anglia.

Among those on sale at the festival is the only beer now brewed in Ipswich, St Jude's, which has just gone into production.

The festival was officially launched by Ipswich mayor Henry Davies and his wife Pauline who joined festival organiser Paul Jeffery to help pull some of the first pints.

It runs until Saturday evening with the doors being open from 11am to 11pm every day.

The event is run by Ipswich and East Suffolk Camra which is hoping to use it to drum up more members and to support moves to bring the former Cliff Quay brewery in Ipswich back to life.

It needs more young members to help run the festival - and it is also putting its weight behind moves to turn the former Tolly Cobbold building into a business centre with its own micro-brewery.

But while real ale and cider is the main focus of the festival, the organisers have also put on special entertainment for visitors.

The musical entertainment will be on Saturday night when John Otway will be bringing his big band to the Corn Exchange.

Tonight there is no entertainment, the emphasis is on conversation among drinkers but tomorrow there will be entertainment from Whiskey Chaser.

Weblink: www.ipswichcamra.com