CAN'S BEST STALL YET: Mela magic mix

The vibrant August Bank Holiday Mela festival was the setting for a memorable Climate Action Newcastle two-day stall - the most ambitious yet by our climate activists.

Visitors including lots of families played with hands-on props to learn more about wildlife neighbours in gardens and verges, and there were tips on how to protect hedgehogs, who are especially at risk due to falling numbers.

We don't need gardens to be gardeners! - blocks of flats can support the equivalent of a wildflower meadow of people plant seeds on window sills or nearby shelves. Free samples of seeds provided popular across the show.

And children enjoyed choosing pictures to turn into little wildlife badges to stick on card to take away.

The event in Exhibition Park had thousands of visitors, enjoying music, dance, circus performances and presentations plus, of course, sampling a huge range of cuisines from scores of stalls.