GREAT British Bake Off quarter finalist Christine Wallace will be the star attraction at this year’s Calne Food and Drink Festival on September 5.

As well as a meet and greet and presenting the prizes from the competitions, Mrs Wallace will be doing a live cooking demonstration in the Calne Town Hall at 3pm.

Mrs Wallace was star baker twice in the fourth series of the hit BBC show, which aired in 2013 and won by Frances Quinn, before leaving at the quarter final stage.

The Calne Food and Drink festival returns next Saturday (Sept5) for the fifth time after being cancelled last year.

The free festival will run from 10am to 4pm and is set to welcome a vast array of food and drink suppliers from the local area as well as from further afield.

As well as the street stalls and a food market, the festival will see tastings, talks and cookery demonstrations and a mini beer festival of local ales and ciders, presented by the White Hart, in the town hall.

Chairman of the festival committee, Rob Merrick, said: “We are really pleased to have Christine coming and we are really looking forward to the day.

“Hopefully it’s going to be the biggest and the best year in our five year history.”

Entry forms for three festival competitions have gone up online for budding chefs to try and impress the judges.

Those who fancy themselves as the next Christine Wallace can enter the Cake for Calne competition. Open to over 18s, contestants must design a recipe for a cake or bun that means Calne to them.

The winning recipe will be produced and sold by the Farmhouse Cafe on Phelps Parade for the next year whilst the winner will get a £30 voucher redeemable at the Farmhouse Cafe.

Under 13 entrants are being challenged to design and name a dish that children will love with the winning entrant being invited to attend a banquet of their own dish at the White Hart Hotel. The winning dish will also feature on the pub’s children’s menu for 12 months.

There’s also a heavenly honey competition for those between 13 and 17 years old who are asked to produce their favourite dish with honey, or design a new one. The winner will receive a gift basket of goodies from the Wiltshire Bee Centre.

For more information regarding bookings at the festival contact Tracy Howell on 01249 814000 or visit www.calnefoodanddrinkfestival.co.uk