Thousands turned out to Whitstable Oyster Festival this weekend to celebrate the town's heritage.

Crowds gathered by the sea in the heatwave, to enjoy a selection of traditional events and pay homage to the oyster industry for which Whitstable is famous.

The festival kicked off on Saturday morning with the landing of the oysters – which saw three men in traditional fishing garb haul oysters ashore.

These were then blessed by Rev Simon Tillotson, vicar of Whitstable's All Saints and St Peter's churches.

After this, crowds lined the streets to watch the oyster parade wind its way through Harbour Street, High Street and Oxford Street.

Huge numbers of people in colourful marine-themed costumes processed through the streets.

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Many of the costumes were made from recycled and reused materials – in keeping with the 'environmental impact' theme of this year's festival.

The festival has come under fire in recent years for antisocial behaviour, litter and "cramped" conditions at some events.

Back in 2016, the festival took place over 10 days, covering two weekends.

But this year's festival – the first to be run by new organisers Full Event Production Ltd – ran for just two days.

Despite this, the family-friendly festival had a schedule packed full of events to suit all ages.

Saturday afternoon saw the much-anticipated oyster eating competition, held on the Harbour Stage.

Contestants attempted to swallow six oysters and half a pint of beer in the shortest time, to be crowned the oyster eating champion.

Children gathered on the seafront for crabbing on Sunday morning.

Prizes were awarded to those who caught the biggest, smallest, angriest, prettiest, and ugliest crabs.

As well as a long list of activities, plenty also enjoyed devouring oysters – the molluscs for which the town is famous.

Whitstable Oyster Company announced record sales of almost 40,000 Whitstable rock oysters, an increase of 25% on last year.

Tankerton food fair was held on the Slopes from 10.30am until 8pm each day – offering cuisine from producers from Kent and beyond, as well as prime views of Tankerton Bay.

After complaints last year about a "squashed" feeling inside the market area, organisers attempted to open up the venue this time around.

They also aimed to minimise single-use plastics, such as plastic cups, plates, cutlery and straws.

On Sunday afternoon, spectators gathered on Long Beach for the annual mud tug.

Teams of brave souls took part in the spectacular tug-of-war in the thick mud.

The men's contest was won by Blatch & Green, who competed against Whitstable RNLI in the final.

The women's contest was won by the Whitstable Wallys, who defended their champions title after winning the event last year.

But the weekend wasn't without drama.

At about 9.30pm on Saturday, paramedics were called to reports of someone unconscious in Horsebridge Road.

Police officers and ambulance crews attended, and treated a patient who had suffered a "medical episode", but they did not require further hospital treatment.

At about 6am on Sunday morning, Whitstable resident Louis Brett discovered the beach was covered in litter and debris, including glass bottles and plastic bags.

But organisers Full Event Production Ltd scheduled clean-ups into their programme of events.

On Sunday morning, 50 volunteers joined a beach clean organised by Plastic Free Whitstable and Whitstable's Marine Environment Group.

Beach cleans were organised for both Sunday morning and this morning.

In total, 72 volunteers collected 247kg of litter – just under quarter of a tonne.

For more photos, see this Thursday's Whitstable Gazette.