IT’S a winter spectacular that brings a community together.

The ancient Celtic festival of Imbolc which celebrates the death of winter and rise of spring has been revived in Marsden since 1993.

Imbolc (pronounced ‘im-olk’) incorporates fireworks, fire sculptures, fire juggling, fire dances and a torchlight parade alongside live music.

The audience for the festival has grown from a few hundred locals to 3,500 people including visitors from across the north of England.

Imbolc, which is run on a small budget by volunteers Angie Boycott-Garner, Ruthie Boycott-Garner, Chris Hunter and Duggs Carre, takes most of the year to prepare.

Performers must be booked and permission obtained from the council and police.

The organisers hold fire skills workshops before the event so villagers can join the performers.

Now up to 200 villagers take part in the event either as performers or stewards.

Principal organiser Angie from Marsden said: “It’s brilliant to be nominated. It’s nice to have a little acknowledgement. As a volunteer I put in hours and hours of work.

“It’s a lovely thing for the village. I do it because I believe passionately in a community and it’s really nice on the night to do something.

“If it’s a community thing I would really like our festival to win because I think it’s a true community festival. It’s done by volunteers and those involved in it come from the community. People can come and really participate in it rather than just be in the audience.”

Imbolc is one of the four principal festivals of the Irish calendar celebrated either at the beginning of February or at the first local signs of spring.

Originally dedicated to the goddess Brighid, in the Christian period it was adopted as St Brigid’s Day.