In Pictures: Action Man balloon, cheese rolling and a royal wedding

8 hours ago

News image — The special Action Man balloon is being inflated in Ashton Court in Bristol on Sunday evening

MJ Ballooning A large orange and purple Action Man hot air balloon is inflated in a grassy area surrounded by spectators and trees. — The special Action Man balloon is being inflated in Ashton Court in Bristol on Sunday evening

In the West this week, a giant Action Man air balloon is taking to the skies and spectators gathered for a royal wedding in Gloucestershire.

Elsewhere, a new West Country cheese rolling event saw people race Babybels, and a Bath adventurer became the first ever British woman to cross the Atlantic in a hydrogen gas balloon.

Here is a selection of photographs from across the region this week.

Bristol

The Entertainer Four people are standing outside 'The Entertainer' toy shop in Cabot Circus, punching the air. Two are wearing 'The Entertainer' t-shirts. They are holding a giant cut-out of a gold coin which says 'one million'

Pennies make a million: Toy shop The Entertainer has raised £1m for The Grand Appeal, the dedicated charity for Bristol Children's Hospital, by asking customers to round up their purchases to the nearest pound. A giant million-pound penny is now on display at its Cabot Circus store.

Bristol Experimental Puppet Festival A crowd of people are standing outside in the pouring rain, dancing with homemade skeleton puppets. People in the background are holding umbrellas.

Puppet makers unite: Wet weather did not stop people from enjoying the Bristol Experimental Puppet Festival on Sunday and showing off their homemade masterpieces. Artists have come from all over the world to participate in the ten-day event.

Greatest hero of them all: The Action Man balloon is one of the largest special shape balloons around. MJ Ballooning urged spectators not to miss out at Ashton Court on Sunday evening because this could be his last appearance due to its ageing fabric.

Leonardo Five different breeds of dog, including a golden retriever and labrador, are wearing yellow neckerchiefs and are being held on leads by charity workers wearing black and yellow polo tops.

Top dogs: Staff at the Leonardo Helicopters site in Bristol got a special visit from therapy dogs this week, after the site chose Therapy Dogs UK as its chosen charity. Bristol is the headquarters for Leonardo's UK Cyber and Security team.

A vicar with short grey hair wearing black clerical clothing is standing in front of the St Mary Redcliffe church spire on a sunny day.

Reaching new heights: The new vicar of St Mary Redcliffe, the Rev Dr Brutus Green, climbed to the top of the church's iconic spire this week, making him the first vicar to do so since 1872. He went up to bless the weather vane - ahead of the installation of solar panels to bring the church to net zero.

Alistair Heap/PA Wire A figurine of Aardman character Morph is sat down eating a belgian bun and waving his hand. He appears to be sat next to a small bottle of paint, colouring pencils and drawing pins. A human hand is holding up a 50p coin with Aardman characters on it including Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the Sheep.

That's mint: Collectable coins celebrating 50 years of Bristol-based animation studio Aardman have been launched by The Royal Mint. The "tails" side of the coin was designed by Aardman and features some of its most recognisable characters, including Morph, Shaun the Sheep and Wallace and Gromit.

Bristol Memorial Woodlands A parade is making its way through Bristol Memorial Woodlands, with different British Army flags being carried. There are crowds of onlookers including veterans and army personnel.

Memorial service: More than 200 people attended the Annual Service of Remembrance at Bristol Memorial Woodlands, near Alveston, this week. Representatives from the armed services, emergency services, schools and veteran organisations laid wreaths to commemorate fallen servicemen and women.

Oliver Dupont Three people kneel down behind a white line holding red Babybels, ready to roll them down the hill, with spectators stood around.

Roll Baby Roll: Clifton Wood residents took to the streets to witness the first ever Great Church Lane Cheese Roll. Contestants crouched in a line and rolled Babybel cheeses down the steep road while avoiding the pavements in this celebration of silliness.

Wiltshire

Salisbury District Hospital's Charity A group of people cheer and wave their arms in front of a mountain

Top trekkers: Twenty-nine people have completed a trek in the foothills of the Indian Himalayas to raise £91,973 for the Stars Appeal at Salisbury Hospital's Charity. The trekkers journeyed from McLeod Ganj, home of the Dalai Lama, and over five days wound up and down steep mountain trails, reaching altitudes of 3,000m.

Athelstan Museum Three men stood with pipes and flat caps in a black and white photo.

Exhibition excitement: It has been 250 years since the USA gained independence from Great Britain. Athelstan Museum's new exhibition explores Malmesbury's connections with America and the first people from the town who set foot there. Stories include the first woman to hold land in her own right, to the men with links to Rockefeller, who were pioneers in oil refining.

Weather Watcher/CraigRich A small brown moth flying past a pink flower

Taking flight: Thank you to Weather Watcher CraigRich for this stunning photo of a Hummingbird Hawk Moth out and about in Winterslow this week.

Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance Charity Four people smiling in front of a helicopter

High flyers: Malmesbury League of Friends has pledged £45,000 to help every school-aged child in Malmesbury take part in Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance Charity's Aware+ programme. The scheme teaches young people lifesaving skills like the recovery position and how to call 999.

Gloucestershire

Reuters A photographer takes pictures as Princess Anne's son Peter Phillips and Harriet Sperling leave following their wedding at All Saints' Church in Kemble, Cirencester.

Royal wedding fever: Spectators gathered for a royal wedding in Kemble in Gloucestershire, as Peter Phillips married NHS nurse Harriet Sperling during a private ceremony on Saturday.

Jack Boskett Two black labradors wearing lanyards are sat on the floor of Tewkesbury Abbey.

Paws for thought: Labrador Flo, an 11-year-old retired assistant verger, has died. Flo used to greet visitors at Tewkesbury Abbey with her dog-friend Eric and her owner, Chris.

Two teenage boys using wheeled frames are kicking a football inside a sports centre. A woman, who is not using a frame, is also involved in the game.

Back in the game: Fifteen-year-old Harley plays frame football after an osteosarcoma diagnosis left him partially paralysed. Harley can now enjoy the sport again and is encouraging others to get involved at Holmleigh Park Sports Centre in Tuffley, Gloucester.

Ben Birchall/PA Wire Harriet Sperling, wearing a white lace gown and veil, and Peter Phillips, in a navy suit with a light blue tie, leave their wedding ceremony at All Saints Church in Kemble, Gloucestershire.

Royal wedding: Peter Phillips married NHS nurse Harriet Sperling at All Saints Church in Kemble, Gloucestershire, on Saturday. The private ceremony was attended by the King, Queen Camilla and Prince and Princess of Wales.

Forestry England/Crown Three peregrine chicks are perched on a sheer cliff face at Symonds Yat Rock

Cliffhanger chicks: Peregrine chicks, weighing around 2.5kg combined, were pictured by Forestry England perched on a cliff face at Symonds Yat Rock in Gloucestershire. Teams managed to take a look at their nesting place as part of work to install new safety fencing. They have now been ringed in preparation for them to take flight.

FeralDays An orange sunset over a residential area.

Evening clouds: Thank you to weather watcher FeralDays for this glorious image of an orange sunset over Gloucestershire this week.

Somerset

Johnny Green/PA Wire Adventurer Alicia Hempleman-Adams is smiling as she touches down in a field in Luxembourg in a hydrogen gas balloon.

Record-breaking: Alicia Hempleman-Adams, from near Bath, has become the first ever British woman to cross the Atlantic in a hydrogen gas balloon. She set off from Maine in the US last Wednesday and landed in Luxembourg on Sunday with her teammates Bert Padelt and Peter Cuneo.

Getty Images A group of spectators at a cricket match try to catch a ball which is flying into the crowd.

Heads up: Spectators attempted to catch the ball during the T20 Vitality Blast match between Somerset and Warwickshire at the County Ground in Taunton on Sunday.

Somerset NHS Foundation Trust New technology is placed next to an MRI scanner at a hospital, appearing to show a mask to wear on your face with lots of holes in it.

Treatment upgrade: Musgrove Park Hospital has introduced new technology which removes the need for people being treated with head, neck and breast cancers to be permanently tattooed. Surface‑guided radiotherapy cameras now track a patient's body surface in real time, without relying on permanent skin marking.

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