CROWDS have gathered in a North-East for the rebirth of a popular music festival.

Stanley Blues Festival ended in 2007 after 15 years over problems with funding the free event.

On Sunday, organised by a new team at a new venue, the festival returned to the former mining town in County Durham.

The site was Oakies Park, instead of the King’s Head Field, where North Durham Academy now stands, and the event forms part of the Stanley Festival of Music.

It is organised by Stanley Town Council and Stanley Events and has attracted thousands of people

Durham County Councillor Carl Marshall, who is part of Stanley Events, said: “We are really pleased with how it has gone. We think we will have had 3,000 by the end of the day. It is good see the old blues crowd back in. It will never like it used to be because it is a different event.

“But the bands have been really well received and there are a lot of families here as well as the hard core blues crowd in the marquee.”

Acts at the festival include Paul Lamb and the King Snakes, the Kingbees, No Time For Jive, Struggle Bunny and Johnny Dickinson.