SEE THE PICTURES: Donnybrook Festival revamp the way to grow

The merger of two of Donnybrook’s biggest events has been hailed an apple-solute success, with thousands turning out to enjoy the fun and celebrations of the Donnybrook Festival on Saturday, April 8.

The inaugural event brought together the Donnybrook Apple Festival and the Donnybrook Food and Wine Festival for the first time, with the a one-day extravaganza designed to showcase the best of what WA’s home of apples had to offer.

The South West town was buzzing as the free event kicked off at 10am, with celebrations this year spilling out of Egan Park — the home of the famous Apple Fun Park — and into the main street, providing plenty of business for local cafes and restaurants.

Merging the two events provided a hub of more than 60 stalls for patrons to enjoy, as well as a local artists’ makers market, a local wine, cider and beer tent, the future farming tent, and much more.

Donnybrook Apple Festival chair Belinda O’Brien said it was the first year in many it had been a free event and was only possible through the committees’ time in preparing grant applications, and generous cash and in-kind sponsorship.

The Apple Olympics — including sack races, apple bobbing and an apple pie eating competition — attracted plenty of cheers in the early afternoon before some patrons carried the celebrations on well into the night at the Donnybrook Hotel.

Festival goers lined up on the sides of the main street at 12.30pm for the historic Grand Parade, with vintage cars from across the South West driving down the street — one of which contained several of the event’s “apple queens”.

Other features of the festival included free scooter and skate workshops, a busking competition, talks about future farming, wine tasting, food vans, and much more.

During the 50s and 60s the festival became well known for its Apple Queen competition, which allowed local ladies to undertake important public relations for the apple industry in Asia and other overseas countries.

The first Donnybrook Apple Festival was held on the Easter weekend in 1954 as a way to celebrate the town’s thriving apple industry.