Visitors to Sittingbourne High Street this weekend will be forgiven for thinking they’ve stepped back in time.

A Medieval Mops Fair will bring the town’s history to life when it opens at 11am on Saturday.

There will be live music, a hog roast, minstrels, actors and fairground attractions as part of a day of celebrations organised by the Sittingbourne Retail Association (SRA).

It will also include a worldwide array of food from “today and yesterday” as well as craft-makers.

Performers and traders will be dressed in costumes of the Middle Ages, with some buildings also being decked out in medieval livery.

A town crier will announce the Mayor of Swale, Cllr George Bobbin, before he officially opens the event.

SRA spokesman Sara Seabridge said the festivities would serve as a reminder that the town was steeped in history and was once a hub for “traders, farmers and travellers”.

She said: “This is the first event of its kind in Sittingbourne for over 400 years.

“We hope it will get people talking, get interested in our heritage and get people into town.”