Town criers across Lancashire read out the Lancashire Day Proclamation today to celebrate the historic county.

Clitheroe, Garstang, Great Harwood and Read and Simonstone were among the towns to see the Proclamation read out at lunchtime - celebrating the historic boundaries of Lancashire and the day where all things Lancashire are celebrated.

Lancashire Day takes place every year on November 27 – the anniversary of when the first MPs were summoned to Parliament from Lancashire in 1295.

Philip Walsh, chair of the Friends of Real Lancashire, attended the proclamation in Clitheroe town centre, where town crier of 40 years Roland Hailwood did the honours.

Mr Walsh said: “It means such a lot [to have town criers carrying on the tradition] because they add loyalty to the town and to Lancashire and they add a bit of colour as well with their costumes.

“This is a day for the people of historic Lancashire, from the Furness Fells down to the River Mersey and from the Irish Sea to the Pennines moors – it’s our historic Lancashire day.

“Lancashire is so historic and we’re here in Clitheroe today and you can’t get more historic than Clitheroe.”

The day is organised and coordinated by the Friends of Real Lancashire and observed with the loyal toast to "The King, Duke of Lancaster”.

The proclamation announces November 27 as Lancashire Day and invites people to “rejoice” that those within the historic boundaries of Lancashire “are forever entitled to style themselves Lancastrians”.

The day celebrates the county and all it has brought to Britain and the world, ignoring administrative local government boundaries which have split up the historic county to celebrate all things Lancashire, which includes Manchester, part of what is now Cheshire, Liverpool and parts of Cumbria, plus the areas still recognised as Lancashire.