In Pictures: Northampton Balloon Festival returns after four years

Northampton Balloon Festival welcomed 65,000 people to the 118-acre Racecourse after a gap of four years since the last one

About 65,000 people attended Northampton Balloon Festival after a four-year hiatus at the town's Racecourse park.

Organisers said the event went well despite windy weather conditions, which meant they had to pause free flying on Friday and Saturday, and a number of complaints about traffic congestion.

They were able to tether balloons and provide basket glows in the evenings.

About 20-30 balloons were seen flying on Sunday at 06:00 BST and 12 later that evening. People also got to witness an evening fireworks display.

Festival organiser Dave Bailey said: "I'm happy with the number of people."

However, scheduled gas works meant access to St George's Avenue from both directions on Kingsley Road was closed, which led to major traffic delays.

Some customers who had tickets to attend the event on Saturday complained on Facebook about three-hour traffic jams to get to the Racecourse.

Those who were not able to make the event were told their tickets would be honoured for the following day.

Up to 30 balloons were flown on Sunday morning

Balloon glows were displayed in the evening

Windy and wet conditions on the first night meant that organisers had to delay free flying

Sunday brought the main array of balloons to the sky at the Northampton Balloon Festival

The BBC balloon also got a chance to fly on Sunday morning

Locals were able to see many of these balloons fly over their homes and gardens