ROCK fans of Bury's "Woodstock" of the late 1970s, where people from all over England and Europe travelled to attend the infamous Deeply Vale pop concerts, turned back the clock at the weekend.

The organisers of that famous event staged a major exhibition to mark the 25th anniversary of the first Deeply Vale Free Pop Festival.

Memories came flooding back when Chris Hewitt and Bury-born Jim O'Neil and Cliff Jackson, the men behind the original festivals from 1976 to 1979, staged a concert at the Empress Ballroom in Blackpool on Sunday (August 12).

The event featured four members of the original line-up of Hawkwind, including Nik Turner and Huw Lloyd-Langton.

The original festivals were held at Ashworth Valley and attracted around 20,000 people.

Chris said: "In 1978, Deeply Vale was probably bigger than Glastonbury. Deeply Vale was always a free festival until it stopped, while others have become big commercial machines." Deeply Vale was responsible for launching the careers of singers, including Simply Red's Mick Hucknall.

The exhibition also featured the first public screening of film footage shot in 1977 and 1978.