Miller Day — a tradition dating back nearly 40 years — continued in Bradford on Avon on Easter Monday as the local Lions Club staged its Easter bonnet parade and egg hunt.

The event took place on Culver Close playing field, with scores of children turning up in their best headwear for the Easter bonnet parade and even more hoping to track down some treats in the Easter egg hunt.

The popular event was originally introduced by New Zealander Philip Miller as an Easter Monday event for children.

With the New Zealand event celebrating multiculturalism and bringing more visitors to the town each year, this year’s traditional chocolate quest has become an international attraction.

As well as those who are Wiltshire-born and bred, several Ukrainian youngsters hosted by Bradford on Avon families took part as well as one new resident Hartley Frye who had come all the way from North Carolina.

Wiltshire Times: Hartley Frye celebrating his creme egg win on Miller Day.Hartley Frye celebrating his creme egg win on Miller Day. (Image: Trevor Porter)

Bradford on Avon Lion's club President Phil Courage said: “Despite the recent heavy rain we had loads of people turn up for the traditional Easter Monday event."

“The children scoured the field to find the blue clues to claim their Cadbury cream eggs. The whole event was over well within an hour, and stayed dry making it a real fun day.”

The club supplied more than 300 Cadbury’s Crème Eggs for the egg hunt, with larger eggs going to the top three contestants in the Easter bonnet parade, and it was Bradford on Avon’s deputy mayor, Cllr Emma Franklin who judged the parade.

Wiltshire Times: The entrants to this year's Miller Day egg hunt set off to claim their creme eggs.The entrants to this year's Miller Day egg hunt set off to claim their creme eggs. (Image: Trevor Porter)

Traditionally, following the Egg hunt families would then down into the town to watch the traditional duck race.

But heavy rainfall during the week and high water levels on the River Avon meant that this was cancelled and rescheduled for May 6th

The Bradford on Avon Lions Club’s next event will be the Giant Car Boot Sale and Family Fun Day on Monday, May 27, which promises a fun day out for all the family on the Culver Close playing field and Victoria Field.

This year, the club are having to restrict the number of stalls at the boot sale due to a Wessex Water project work re-seeding part of Victoria Filed.