SOUTHAMPTON Guildhall Square was “absolutely rocking” over the weekend.

The city centre burst into life on Saturday as part of a cultural street festival.

The Re:Claim Festival included more than 15 separate events – music, sport, art and gaming – running through the “spine of the city”.

Residents and visitors were been able to enjoy a range of entertainment – with much of it completely free.

The Guildhall Square, Above Bar Street and some of the central parks played host to live music, dance performances, street art, skateboarding and street football.

There were five separate stages with genres spanning Hip Hop, Reggae and electronic dance music

Jimmy Barrow, a 16-year-old skater from New Milton, said he found out about the event on social media and from friends.

He described the event as a ‘phat sesh’ which he translated to “loads of people skating having a good time”.

He added there were “good vibes” and the experience had been fun.

The event was organised by GO! Southampton and forms part of efforts for Southampton to be crowned UK City of Culture 2025.

Commenting on the event, Giles Semper, the executive director of the city BID, said: “‘We set out to give a platform to some of the great cultural organisations in the city and also to ‘take back’ the city centre after Covid, driving footfall and spend for our member businesses.

“We also had a very clear focus on the UK City of Culture bid, and how we could give a foretaste of some of the things that might be in store when we win.

“Guildhall Square was absolutely rocking with the music stage, the Slamma (skateboarding) and Street Jam (street art). I just loved the fact that hundreds of people were celebrating our cultural history in the city and also taking part. The atmosphere was wonderful.”

Mr Semper said a team from Solent University will be evaluating how Re:Claim can be improved for next year.