Organisers said a festival will not take place again due to rising costs.

Bexhill Festival of the Sea celebrated all things marine with food and craft stalls, live music, sea angling competitions and a world record challenge for the largest gathering of mermaids.

The last time the festival took place was in 2019 when the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of mermaids was broken by tail clad participants.

Some 317 mermaids congregated, beating the previous record of 300 set in Greensboro, North Carolina, USA.

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Organisers said in a statement this week: “Unfortunately, after nine years the event will not take place again.  This is due to the increased costs to run the event.  We trust that you will continue to support local traders and respect and protect our marine wildlife.

“The organisers want to say a massive thank you to the wonderful volunteers on our very small committee and volunteers who gave their time and effort during build up and festival days. We all take this opportunity to thank our visitors for their support though the years and are so pleased that such a good time was had by all.”