BACUP is the place to be this weekend with a host of activities combined with the traditional Britannia Coconutters Easter boundary dance.

Most events will be held on Saturday. A guided circular walk led by historian John Taylor on a six-mile route from Bacup to Stacksteads will be the highlight of Sunday's activities.

On Saturday the Nutters will leave the Traveller's Rest in Britannia at 9am and dance through the town, including Olive House, the fire station and Irwell Inn.

At 1pm they will stop for lunch at the George and Dragon and from there the group will split into two sections to dance around the town centre, visiting various pubs before ending up at the Glen at the end of Stacksteads at about 8pm.

Added attractions include a pictorial exhibition of the Coconutters down the years at Bacup Natural History Society Museum in Yorkshire Street where there will also be an open day.

From 1pm to 4pm there will be a craft fair at the Crown, Greave Road, and costumes will be on display from 11am to 2.30pm at the Royal Court Theatre in Rochdale Road.

At the A, B and D Centre, in Burnley Road there will be photographic display by Bacup Camera Club and an exhibition of artwork by Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School as part of the town trail.

And the town's new trail will be unveiled on three short guided walks which will leave the library at 10.30am, 1pm and 3.30pm.

The five new temporary art projects which form part of the Irwell Sculpture Trail will also be launched in the town centre.

The evening rounds off with a slide show on Owd Bacup by Ben Ashworth at the natural history museum.

Festival co-ordinator Stuart Hammond said: "This year the Nutters have teamed up again to put together a while range of arts and heritage events over the weekend -- from art exhibitions to local heritage walks and children's competitions. All events are free of charge."