PROVING that science can be found in the most ordinary of things, scientists yesterday walked, ran and hopped across a vat of custard.

The stunt, at Newcastle's Centre for Life, was arranged to launch the Newcastle Science Festival, which runs from March 10 to 18.

Now in its fifth year, the festival will feature 100 events, demonstrating that science is all around us and can be fun.

Children from Dunston Riverside School, near Gateshead, took part in yesterday's hands-on science experience - and got the chance to walk on custard without sinking into it.

Newcastle Science Festival chairwoman Linda Conlon said: "Custard is a surprisingly scientific substance and, if you get the right consistency, you can actually walk on it.

"It's a non-Newtonian substance, which means that when pressure is applied, it acts like a solid."

She added: "We're hoping that by showing how science can be found in something fun like custard run, we can encourage those who are new to science to come and try some of the festival events."

Elsewhere, the Discovery Museum, in Newcastle - winner of the Best Family Attraction Award at the North-East Tourism Awards - hosts a range of family science events, while Segedunum Roman Fort, in Wallsend, North Tyneside, is staging workshops revealing recent research and the science of Egyptology.

For more details about events, visit the website www.newcastlescience festival.co.uk