Bull and Barrel ready to fire community imagination

Preparations are full steam ahead for Saturday’s LiveLighter Dardanup Bull and Barrel Festival.

With last year’s washout causing the festival to be cancelled, the show is back bigger and better than ever this year with about 20,000 people from the South West and Perth metropolitan area expected to attend the day.

Highlights of the festival will include a kids craft marquee, animal farms, art exhibitions, a wearable agricultural art parade and the spectacular end of the wooden bull sculpture being set alight.

Designer and artist Russell Sheridan said the process of creating the bull sculpture took about five weeks to complete.

“The festival is all about creativity,” Mr Sheridan said.

“First, I made a model of the bull with a lady playing a cello on top then I decided to make the most complicated shape with a twist in his head so we had to make it in pieces in different sheds.”

Hoping for a bright and sunny day, festival chairwoman Jill Cross said a variety of new and wonderful attractions would please families.

“The kids marquee and K9 Connections will provide heaps of fun, and have-a-go games will encourage friendly competition between mums, dads and kids,” Ms Cross said.

“Russell always does a fabulous job and the burning of the bull is going to be marvellous.”

Free entry to the festival along with 160 market, activities and food stalls ensured the day was set to provide entertainment for all.