MORE than 100 people braved a chilly January evening to celebrate the annual Porlock Wassail.

Wassailing is a Medieval Christmastide drinking ritual which has taken place in orchards in the South West of England for hundreds of years and is intended to ensure a good cider apple harvest the following year.

Residents and visitors alike gathered first at Doverhay Manor Museum to watch a performance of the traditional Mummers play, written by Chris De Vere Hunt, before heading outside to the museum’s orchard.

Here the oldest tree in the orchard was blessed and sung to before the group moved on to Sparkhayes Orchard and Porlock Visitor Centre Orchard to repeat the ritual.

The event, on Saturday January 4, also saw revellers sing and make noise to drive away evil spirits as they journeyed between the orchards.

The wassail raised £120, shared between the museum and the visitor centre.