AN open air music event nicknamed the Glastonbury of the North-East lived up to its billing at the weekend - with the live music accompanied by heavy rain.

The Whamfest event at Low Wham, near Bishop Auckland in County Durham, took place on Friday and Saturday night.

Seventeen local bands played a variety of music styles, entertaining those who did brave the weather.

But with crowds well down on the estimated 2,000 that had been expected, organiser Simon Gillespie admitted that the weather had put a dampener on proceedings.

"The bands were really good, but not as many people came as we hoped because of the weather, which was disappointing," he said.

"All the crowd that were there loved it and enjoyed it, and we'd certainly do it again next year.

Mr Gillespie, who owns the Wear Valley Brewery, added: "A lot of similar events around the country were cancelled because of the rain but we carried on - it was certainly a Glastonbury-style experience."

The event took place in an open field behind the Malt Shovel pub and bands included The Distractions, from Bishop Auckland, Captain Rock, from Crook and Sabatica, from Northumberland.