VIDEO: A Littlehampton show enjoyed by onsie and all

Thousands of revellers flooded the Rosemead Open Space to watch the event, which was once again staged by Littlehampton Town Council.

And one of the stars of the show proved to be a brand-new addition – the onesie competition, with scores of people, young and old, ditching their regular attire in favour of something all the more wacky.

Damian Dixon, 45, of Wisborough Green, was the adult champion of the competition, winning a Kindle Fire HD tablet courtesy of sponsors Titan Storage.

He said: “It’s scarey winning. I’m definitely pleased and surprised but it’s going to completely ruin my street cred.”

Helena Stevens and her dog Holly, who was dressed in its own colourful onesie, were the champions of the pets’ onesie competition, winning a £20 Pets at Home voucher.

But it was the children’s category that proved especially busy, with more than 50 youngsters joining in with the fun.

There was everything from superheroes like Superman, Ironman and the Incredible Hulk, to zebras, cows, sheep and even the odd dragon or two taking part in the event.

However, in spite of the fierce competition, the overall victor was four-year-old Emily Wadey, who was presented with an iPad Mini.

Littlehampton mayor Jill Long helped to judge the competition and was thrilled by the number of competitors.

She said: “The Town Show is growing in popularity every year. We have got more people coming down than ever before – it’s been truly fantastic.

“And the onesie competition was excellent. We had so many people joining in, especially in the children’s competition.

“In the pets’ competition we had about eight or nine entries, most of them dogs, apart from one tortoise called Arthur who was in his woollen onesie.

“So we are definitely going to be bringing the onesie competition back. It was a brilliant success.”

As well as being a great attraction for all the family to kick back and enjoy, the event was also a vital chance for the area’s community groups to advertise themselves.

More than 50 groups from across Littlehampton packed into the Community Marquee this year, with many more spilling out of it into the field.

Penny Keen is the founder of Littlehampton-based armed forces charity Support Our Soldiers (SOS).

She managed to grab a last-minute space in the marquee and didn’t regret doing so.

“This is my first time here and it’s been fantastic,” she said. “Charities like ours needs things like this because we are just run by volunteers.

“We don’t have the PR teams behind us like the bigger charities and therefore we don’t get as much publicity.

“So events like this really help us get our message across to people.

On the main stage, sponsored by the Arun View Inn, there were live performances by cover band Murdoch’s Crazy Eyes and Emily Johnston.

The Littlehampton Dog Training Club pets’ show also proved popular, as did the displays from Dance Industry Studios and Sussex Tornados Cheerleaders.

The Town Show pulled in the crowds, too, with the marquee awash with colour from all the plants, fruits, stalls and handicraft displays.

Councillor Malcolm Belchamber, chairman of Littlehampton Town Council’s community resources committee, was impressed by the turnout inside the marquee.

“There are some truly wonderful displays here and some of the flowers are lovely,” he said. “I think this really vindicates the decision to keep the Town Show and Family Fun Day together.

“The town has really voted with its feet and it’s been a really good day.”