STREET performances focusing on Hexham’s Viking heritage are taking place as part of Hexham’s role in a series of events for the Great Northumberland Winter Festival.

The festival, funded through the Northumberland Cultural Fund, has been launched to support new and diverse cultural events across the county taking place until March 2020.

A Viking Invasion, organised by Hexham Community Partnership, sees a series of street theatre performances and workshops taking place across the town.The first performance took place on Saturday outside of Hexham Abbey, with others planned for Friday, November 29 and Friday, December 13.

The performances allow visitors to find out more about Viking weaponry, while there is also the chance to try on some traditional Viking costumes, taste Viking age food and experience stories from Viking myths and sagas.

Hexham will also host the inaugural Festival of Flame at Hexham Abbey as part of the Great Northumberland Winter Festival.

On Friday, visitors will be able to discover what the Abbey looks like illuminated only by candlelight, with hundreds of tealights burning in the design of four interlaced triquetra and an atmospheric soundtrack interspersed with bite-sized live performances of Bach.

There will also be specially commissioned work by artist Helen Clark and local writer Stan Beckensall has written a specially commissioned poem to capture the essence of the occasion.

Visitors heading to the Queen’s Hall will be transported to an enchanted forest in preparation for festive performances of A Viking Christmas throughout December, produced by Queen’s Hall Arts and written by North-East playwright Gary Kitching.