A young entertainer was nobody's fool when she picked up the title of junior jester at a local theme park.

Victoria Hansford, 10, was 'court' up in the excitement at Camelot Theme Park when 27 budding comedians performed in front of an audience of hundreds in the first ever Junior Jesters contest.

Victoria, of Railway Road, Brinscall, delivered a self taught routine of jocular mayhem which wowed the audience and led to her being selected as a title winner.

The contest, held earlier his month, intended to find some of the region's top young talents.

Victoria,who starts at Holy Cross High School next month, had visitors roaring with laughter with her funny faces and gags in the jousting arena and she even managed to learn some new jesting skills from Mad Edgar and his accident prone sidekick Jess.

She said: "I was a little bit nervous before I went on because there were a lot of people watching but I really wanted to give it a try.

"I remembered to speak loudly so everyone could hear. I told a joke about a fish who swam into a wall and said 'Damn!' and everyone laughed so that made me feel better.

"It was fun being in front of the audience and I enjoyed meeting Mad Edgar and Jess who are always funny."

Victoria was supported in the arena by her parents, Alison and Stephen and nine-year-old brother Matthew who helped her prepare by matching her in the face pulling stakes.

Mrs Hansford said: "Victoria is normally the quiet one of the two and I was a little surprised that she put herself forward.

"The arena was still packed because the jousting had just finished but she was great and we're all proud of her performance."

Camelot marketing manager Sandra Dempsey said: "Victoria is a born entertainer who fully deserved her junior jester title. It was a lot of fun to see so many children performing and putting smiles on faces."