ONE of Hampshire's biggest live attractions is celebrating its 30th anniversary with its first ever full four-day programme.

Winchester Hat Fair, the festival of street theatre, has become a must-see event, attracting tens of thousands of people from across Hampshire and the south every year.

This year's event runs from July 1 to 4 and has been expanded by Sian Thomas, its director, working on her second fair.

A new feature this year is the staging of events through Thursday, especially the Inside Out Day. Professionals such as doctors and lawyers will go into local schools and create performances which will be taken out onto the streets.

Friday remains Schools Day which starts with a giant procession of hundreds of local children through the streets.

On Saturday night there will be a Street Continental procession, creating a fiesta atmosphere.

A highlight will be the show by Spanish dance company Producione Imperdible. It performs on a glass stage and the audience sits in reclining chairs underneath the glass.

Ms Thomas rejected suggestions the fair was getting too big. For the first time a production manager has been hired to oversee the health and safety issues.

Ms Thomas said: "Hat Fair is still at heart a buskers' festival. All the other stuff is extra to that. It is their energy that makes the festival so vibrant. Only one event, the cabaret, is not free."

Despite the steady growth of the event the budget remains only £80,000. Funding from the Arts Council is increasing and this year the fair is being sponsored by Hotel du Vin, the Winchester-based hotel chain which is celebrating its tenth anniversary.

Payment to performers is reduced because the fair is the only one in Britain where the performers can put out their hats to collect donations.

For the first time the fair is hiring professional stewards but Ms Thomas said there remained a pressing need for 40 to 50 volunteers to help run the event. She is also looking for a volunteer driver with their own van.

A preliminary event this year is the performance of No Fit State Circus at River Park in mid-June.